- Partnership covers North America, Europe, Japan, and Australia to accelerate global access of HLX13 in immuno-oncology combinations
- Henlius to receive $31 million upfront, and up to $270 million in milestones
SHANGHAI, April 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On April 29, 2025, Shanghai Henlius Biotech, Inc. (2696.HK) announced a licensing agreement with Sandoz (SIX: SDZ; OTCQX: SDZNY), the global leader in generic and biosimilar medicines, granting exclusive commercialization rights for its self-developed ipilimumab biosimilar HLX13 in the United States, 42 European countries and regions, Japan, Canada, and Australia.
Under the agreement, Henlius will be responsible for development, manufacturing and commercial supply of HLX13, and is eligible to receive up to a total of $301 million, including a $31 million upfront and additional milestone payments. As the global leader in generic and biosimilar medicines, Sandoz is committed to its purpose of “pioneering access for patients” and has benefited over 900 million patients worldwide with approximately 1,300 products. This collaboration will leverage Sandoz’s established global network and commercialization expertise to accelerate the accessibility of HLX13 in mainstream biopharma markets.
“At Henlius, we remain deeply committed to delivering high-quality biologics to patients around the world,” said Dr. Jason Zhu, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Henlius. “Our collaboration with Sandoz marks another important step toward enhancing the global accessibility of our therapies. We believe that putting patients at the core of our globalization strategy is key to fulfilling our vision of ‘Developed in China, Access for the World.'”
“We’re excited to join forces with Sandoz,” said Ping Cao, Chief Business Officer and Senior Vice President of Henlius. “By combining Henlius’ proven strengths in biologics R&D and manufacturing with extensive global reach and commercialization expertise of Sandoz, we aim to accelerate the worldwide expansion of HLX13 and bring advanced treatment options to more patients across key markets.”
HLX13 is a key component of Henlius’ self-developed biosimilar pipeline. Its reference product, Yervoy®, the world’s first CTLA-4 inhibitor, has been approved in various countries and regions in combination with nivolumab for the treatment of melanoma and hepatocellular carcinoma, among other indications. Henlius has established an integrated global platform for R&D, regulatory registration, and clinical operations, backed by a manufacturing and quality management system that meets global regulatory standards. The company has successfully launched four products in markets beyond China. Henlius is committed to advancing the global development of HLX13 and working with partners to provide more high-quality, affordable treatment options for patients worldwide.
* Yervoy® is a registered trademark of Bristol-Myers Squibb (US)
About Henlius
Henlius (2696.HK) is a global biopharmaceutical company with the vision to offer high-quality, affordable and innovative biologic medicines for patients worldwide with a focus on oncology, autoimmune diseases and ophthalmic diseases. Up to date, 6 products have been launched in China, 4 have been approved for marketing in overseas markets, and 5 marketing applications have been accepted for review in China, the U.S. and the EU, respectively. Since its inception in 2010, Henlius has built an integrated biopharmaceutical platform with core capabilities of high-efficiency and innovation embedded throughout the whole product life cycle including R&D, manufacturing and commercialization. It has established global innovation centre and Shanghai-based commercial manufacturing facilities certificated by China, the EU and U.S. GMP.
Henlius has pro-actively built a diversified and high-quality product pipeline covering about 50 molecules and has continued to explore immuno-oncology combination therapies with proprietary HANSIZHUANG (anti-PD-1 mAb) as the backbone. To date, the company’s launched products include HANLIKANG (rituximab), the first China-developed biosimilar, HANQUYOU (trastuzumab, trade name: HERCESSI™ in the U.S., Zercepac® in Europe), a China-developed mAb biosimilar approved in China, Europe and U.S., HANDAYUAN (adalimumab), HANBEITAI (bevacizumab), HANSIZHUANG (serplulimab, trade name: Hetronifly® in Europe), the world’s first anti-PD-1 mAb for the first-line treatment of SCLC, and HANNAIJIA (neratinib). What’s more, Henlius has conducted over 30 clinical studies for 19 products, expanding its presence in major markets as well as emerging markets.
