Li Ka-shing’s HutchMed strikes US$1.1 billion deal with unit of Japan’s Takeda to license colon cancer drug
- Japan’s Takeda Pharmaceutical will exclusively develop and manufacture fruquintinib outside mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau
- HutchMed will receive US$400 million, as well as additional payments on hitting development and sales milestones
HutchMed (China), which counts Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing’s flagship company as its biggest shareholder, said it had reached a US$1.1 billion deal to license its colon cancer drug to Japan’s Takeda Pharmaceutical for markets outside China.
The exclusive worldwide licence agreement will allow a subsidiary of Takeda to develop, commercialise and manufacture fruquintinib outside mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau.
HutchMed will receive US$400 million upfront in a deal that could reach US$1.13 billion, with potential payments for reaching regulatory, development and commercial sales milestones, as well as royalties on net sales.
“This transaction is consistent with our strategic shift that we announced in November 2022 to accelerate our path to profitability,” said Weiguo Su, HutchMed’s CEO and chief scientific officer.
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“We stated that we would focus on the innovative medicines in our pipeline, such as fruquintinib and others, that are most likely to generate near-term value, and that we would be uncompromising in our commitment to bringing our medicines to patients worldwide,” Su said. “Not only does the deal with Takeda accelerate this global ambition, but it provides us with more bandwidth and extended cash runway to advance other opportunities.”