Will an up to US$500 million IPO by this Suzhou cancer drug developer be the harbinger of more to come to Hong Kong?

Chinese drug developer Innovent Biologics has set a goal to cut cancer drug costs by halving the development time to five years, an ambition that could be funded by a listing in Hong Kong, which this week welcomed pre-revenue biotechnology companies to take part in capital raising activities for the first time.  

The Suzhou, Jiangsu province-based company, is seeking to raise US$300 million to US$500 million from a Hong Kong initial public offering, according to Reuters.

The company is among dozens seeking to tap the city’s nascent equity capital raising channel to fund drugs and medical device research and commercialisation. 

Innovent has raised almost US$600 million through five rounds of private share sales since its inception seven years ago, which co-founder and chairman Michael Yu Dechao said was the largest private equity fundraising among its Chinese peers. 

He declined to comment on its listing plan, saying only that the company is monitoring the development of Hong Kong as a biotech listing venue.  

The company’s investors include Eight Roads and F Prime – two proprietary investment units associated with Fidelity, Eli Lilly-backed Lilly Asia Ventures, Legend Holdings’ Legend Capital, Singapore’s sovereign fund manager Temasek, US investment firm Capital Group, state-backed SDIC Fund Management and units of insurers China Life and Ping An.