--- title: "Everest’s US$250 million buy signals rising global appetite for China biotech" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/282130717.md" description: "Everest Medicines is set to acquire Hasten Biopharmaceuticals for US$250 million, gaining rights to 14 chronic-disease treatments in the Asia-Pacific region. This acquisition, which includes a US$148.8 million shareholder loan, reflects a growing trend of global investment in China's biopharmaceutical sector. The deal comes as cross-border out-licensing by Chinese drugmakers reached a record US$60 billion in Q1 2023, driven by demand for early-stage assets. Additionally, Syneron Bio raised US$150 million to advance its AI-driven drug development platform, highlighting the increasing interest in innovative biotech solutions." datetime: "2026-04-09T04:00:50.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/282130717.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/282130717.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/282130717.md) --- # Everest’s US$250 million buy signals rising global appetite for China biotech China’s biopharmaceutical sector is seeing an uptick in deal-making, with sovereign wealth funds from Singapore and the United Arab Emirates joining Chinese state-backed investors to back next-generation drug developers. Shanghai-based Everest Medicines agreed to spend US$250 million to acquire a Singapore company holding rights to 14 chronic-disease treatments across the Asia-Pacific region, according to a stock exchange filing on Wednesday. Its Singapore unit will acquire 100 per cent of Hasten Biopharmaceuticals and assume a US$148.8 million shareholder loan from the target’s parent. An independent valuation placed Hasten’s equity value at about US$320 million as of March 31, implying Everest is buying the business at a roughly 22 per cent discount. Hasten brings a 120-strong team focused on cardiovascular, renal and metabolic diseases. Everest said the acquisition would support the expansion of its commercialised drugs beyond mainland China. The deal comes amid a broader influx of global capital into Chinese biotech. Cross-border out-licensing by Chinese drugmakers reached a record US$60 billion in the first three months of the year, driven by rising demand from multinational pharmaceutical companies for early-stage assets, according to the National Medical Products Administration. One indicator of that shift is Syneron Bio, an emerging biotech firm developing macrocyclic peptide drugs using an artificial intelligence-driven discovery platform. The company raised US$150 million in a series B round on March 31, it said in a statement. The funding round was led by an unnamed international life sciences investor, with co-lead participation from Decheng Capital and CDH VGC. New backers included the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Temasek, Singapore’s state-owned investment firm, while existing investors such as AstraZeneca, Biotech Development Fund and Lenovo Capital also participated. Syneron said the proceeds would accelerate development of its Synova platform – which integrates AI and data analytics to optimise macrocyclic peptide design – and support the advancement of its clinical pipeline. Such molecules were seen as promising candidates for treating cancers, autoimmune disorders and infectious diseases where traditional small-molecule drugs and antibodies have struggled, according to a review published last year by Chemical & Engineering News. Founded in 2021 with operations in China and the US, Syneron had raised a total of US$250 million across four funding rounds, according to data from the online investment-tracking platform Crunchbase. Momentum is also building in cell therapies. XellSmart Biopharmaceutical (Suzhou), which focuses on treatments for central nervous system diseases, said it had secured 500 million yuan (US$69 million) in combined series C and C+ funding, according to a company statement published on April 2. The round drew a mix of state-backed and industrial investors, including China Reform Venture Capital Fund and Suzhou Industrial Investment Social Security Fund. XellSmart, founded in 2021 in Suzhou by Li Xiang – a graduate of Peking University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison – also operates in the US. Its therapies are being evaluated in a phase 1 trial involving four separate injections targeting Parkinson’s disease, spinal cord injury and sclerosis. ### Related Stocks - [159892.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159892.CN.md) - [516500.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/516500.CN.md) - [520880.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/520880.CN.md) - [588250.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/588250.CN.md) - [516820.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/516820.CN.md) - [516930.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/516930.CN.md) - [588130.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/588130.CN.md) - [159615.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159615.CN.md) - [520690.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/520690.CN.md) - [159506.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159506.CN.md) - [513060.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/513060.CN.md) - [159316.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159316.CN.md) - [159992.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159992.CN.md) - [159570.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159570.CN.md) - [159849.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159849.CN.md) - [560600.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/560600.CN.md) - [512010.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/512010.CN.md) - [159567.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159567.CN.md) - [159837.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159837.CN.md) - [588860.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/588860.CN.md) - [513700.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/513700.CN.md) - [159102.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159102.CN.md) - [159859.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159859.CN.md) - [512290.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/512290.CN.md) - [513120.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/513120.CN.md) - [510660.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/510660.CN.md) ## Related News & Research - [20:03 ETHarbour BioMed Announces Promising Preclinical Data for LET003, Its First AI-Enabled Drug Candidate](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286688082.md) - [Flow Pharma U.S. Patent Application Allowed for Issuance Covering Broad-Spectrum Ebola Therapy](https://longbridge.com/en/news/287076761.md) - [Analyst Reiterates Buy on Microbix, Citing Temporary China Slowdown and Growing Diversified Demand](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286665358.md) - [CSPC’s ADC SYS6010 Wins New Breakthrough Status in China Esophageal Cancer](https://longbridge.com/en/news/285925629.md) - [01:00 ETNational Kidney Foundation Innovation Fund Invests in Biohope to Advance Personalized Medicine in Kidney Transplantation](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286359416.md)