OBI Pharma Inc (浩鼎生技) has signed an agreement with Odeon Therapeutics (Hong Kong) Ltd (康騰浩諾香港生物科技) to give it the rights to two of its experimental drugs, OBI-833 and OBI-999, in China, OBI said on Tuesday.
OBI would receive US$200 million for the licensing of the cancer drugs, which includes US$12 million in newly issued Odeon shares as a signing payment, and US$188 million as development and commercialization milestone payments, the Taipei-based company said in a regulatory filing.
The drug developer would also receive double-digit percentage royalties on Odeon’s net sales of the two drugs after they are approved in China, it said.
Photo: Chen Yung-chi, Taipei Times
OBI granted Odeon exclusive rights to further develop, register and commercialize OBI-999 and OBI-833, it said, adding that the deal also includes Hong Kong and Macau.
Odeon would be responsible for all development costs, as well as subsequent regulatory and commercialization costs, it added.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Investment Commission has approved the deal, OBI said.
As China’s cancer treatment market has great potential for growth, OBI and Odeon are planning to press ahead with the research and sale of the two drugs, aiming to share the commercial benefits, the filing said.
OBI-833 and OBI-999 are experimental drugs targeting Globo H, a tumor antigen that has been detected in up to 15 different cancers and has been reported to play an important role in tumor progression.
OBI-833 is a therapeutic cancer vaccine consisting of a synthetic Globo H antigen, while OBI-999 is a novel antibody drug conjugate using a Globo H antibody to target cancer cells with high Globo H expression.
“Odeon looks forward to working closely with OBI to bring these new treatment options to patients in China,” OBI chief executive officer Tim Xiao (肖汀) said in a statement.
OBI-999 has completed phase 1 trials in the US, showing excellent safety and pharmacokinetics, while OBI-333 also demonstrated great potential as an immune-oncology therapeutic vaccine, Xiao said.
OBI said that it gained local approval to conduct phase 2 clinical trial for OBI-333, expecting primary endpoint evaluation in 2024.
When an apartment comes up for rent in Germany’s big cities, hundreds of prospective tenants often queue down the street to view it, but the acute shortage of affordable housing is getting scant attention ahead of today’s snap general election. “Housing is one of the main problems for people, but nobody talks about it, nobody takes it seriously,” said Andreas Ibel, president of Build Europe, an association representing housing developers. Migration and the sluggish economy top the list of voters’ concerns, but analysts say housing policy fails to break through as returns on investment take time to register, making the
‘SILVER LINING’: Although the news caused TSMC to fall on the local market, an analyst said that as tariffs are not set to go into effect until April, there is still time for negotiations US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that he would likely impose tariffs on semiconductor, automobile and pharmaceutical imports of about 25 percent, with an announcement coming as soon as April 2 in a move that would represent a dramatic widening of the US leader’s trade war. “I probably will tell you that on April 2, but it’ll be in the neighborhood of 25 percent,” Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club when asked about his plan for auto tariffs. Asked about similar levies on pharmaceutical drugs and semiconductors, the president said that “it’ll be 25 percent and higher, and it’ll
NOT TO WORRY: Some people are concerned funds might continue moving out of the country, but the central bank said financial account outflows are not unusual in Taiwan Taiwan’s outbound investments hit a new high last year due to investments made by contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and other major manufacturers to boost global expansion, the central bank said on Thursday. The net increase in outbound investments last year reached a record US$21.05 billion, while the net increase in outbound investments by Taiwanese residents reached a record US$31.98 billion, central bank data showed. Chen Fei-wen (陳斐紋), deputy director of the central bank’s Department of Economic Research, said the increase was largely due to TSMC’s efforts to expand production in the US and Japan. Investments by Vanguard International
WARNING SHOT: The US president has threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on all imported vehicles, and similar or higher duties on pharmaceuticals and semiconductors US President Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested that a trade deal with China was “possible” — a key target in the US leader’s tariffs policy. The US in 2020 had already agreed to “a great trade deal with China” and a new deal was “possible,” Trump said. Trump said he expected Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to visit the US, without giving a timeline for his trip. Trump also said that he was talking to China about TikTok, as the US seeks to broker a sale of the popular app owned by Chinese firm ByteDance Ltd (字節跳動). Trump last week said that he had
RSS