CNEI invests $25.4m in Chinese drug developer

The China-focused growth capital investor committed $21 million earlier this year and injected an additional $4.4 million last month. It bought stakes in the company from two undisclosed state-owned enterprise shareholders.

CNEI claims that Hong Kong-listed FDZJ is one of few pharma companies in China that develops its own drugs and holds original invention patents issued by the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA). It recently obtained new drug certificates for Hemoporfin, which is used to treat port-wine stain.

The company has developed four major R&D platforms: genetic engineering drugs, photodynamic therapy drugs, drug delivery systems and medical diagnostics products. Fully commercialized treatments include ALA-PDT, a photodynamic therapy drug used to treat skin diseases, and Libod, a cancer chemotherapy treatment agent.

The company was founded in 1996 by Fudan University with support from local government investment agencies. It went public on Hong Kong's Growth Enterprise Market three years later.

According to an interim report for the six months ended June, Shanghai Pharmaceutical, a Shanghai-listed pharmaceuticals company, and Shanghai Industrial Investment each owned 23.68% of the company. Shanghai Zhangjiang Group and Shanghai Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park also held significant stakes, while Fudan University and company management had smaller holdings.

CNEI is currently investing out of its $255 million second fund. Operating through a transparent onshore structure, the firm targets well established Chinese growth companies in a wide range of industries, with a particular focus on opportunities tied to domestic consumption.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Healthcare
• PIPEs
• China
• China New Enterprise Investment (CNEI)
• Growth capital
• healthcare