Key Takeaways:
• Clinical trials indicate that Sciwind's candidate drug, ecnoglutide, can outperform existing GLP-1 receptor agonists such as semaglutide• The company has already licensed out the overseas rights to its drug, with one deal potentially worth more than $2.4 billion
In a few short years, weight-loss drugs have taken the world by storm, accounting for nearly 30% of the global biopharmaceutical market by the first half of 2025.
While the treatments were pioneered by Big Pharma multinationals, Chinese biotech companies are keen to tap into the exponential demand by supplying their own versions of GLP-1 drugs, with the help of equity investors.
The latest Chinese drug developer to turn to the capital markets is Hangzhou Sciwind Biosciences Co. Ltd., which is working on a product to challenge semaglutide, the active ingredient in leading anti-obesity therapies.
Sciwind has applied to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to help raise the funds to turn its clinical research into commercial success.
The Chinese biotech has yet to launch any product on the market but is expecting regulatory approval next year for its core candidate drug, an ecnoglutide injection (XW003) that is being reviewed by China's National Medical Products Administration.
Traditional GLP-1 drugs such as liraglutide and semaglutide are classed as non-biased agonists as they trigger an array of cellular signals to regulate blood sugar and curb the appetite. As a result, proteins known ...
