Hillhouse leads $160m Series B for China's Genor Biopharma

Other investors include Temasek Holdings, China Resources Zhengda Life Science Foundation, Haitong Capital and Cavenham PE. The proceeds will be used for R&D into new drugs, clinical trials for existing pipeline products, and the commercialization of treatments in the later stages of development.

In 2018, Hillhouse has acquired a 50% stake in Genor from its parent company Walvax Biotechnology for RMB1.31 billion ($184 million). It made an additional investment of RMB290 million. Following the deal, Walvax retained 13.59%, according to AVCJ Research.

Founded in 2007, Genor focuses on antibody drugs that target cancer. It has 10 products entering the clinical development stages. The company employes 400 people in Shanghai, Beijing and Yunnan province. Bloomberg reported in December that Genor was looking to raise $200 million in a Hong Kong IPO that could happen as soon as mid-2020.

Biotech is currently one of the more robust areas for private equity and venture capital investment in China. Nearly $850 million has been committed across more than 30 deals so far this year, compared to $1.2 billion across approximately 80 transactions for the full 12 months of 2019.

Recent deals include Mabwell Biotech, a Chinese drug developer with one treatment cleared for production, which raised RMB1.97 billion ($276 million) in Series A funding. Meanwhile, Jiangsu Atom Bioscience & Pharmaceutical closed a $30 million Series B round.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Healthcare
• Early-stage
• Pharmaceuticals
• Hillhouse Capital Management
• China Resources Capital
• Temasek Holdings