In the first half of 2026, Chinese innovative drugs went global with remarkable results: BD transactions exceeded $100 billion, and leading companies such as CSPC, Hengrui, Innovant, and Hansoh successively reached major collaborations with multinational pharmaceutical companies (MNCs). Behind the repeatedly record-high transaction volumes, a more noteworthy change is that multinational pharmaceutical companies (MNCs) do not distribute money evenly across all pipelines. Their shopping lists are becoming highly concentrated, with repeatedly validated “hardcore targets” that can address unmet global clinical needs becoming the absolute main force in the rush.

Among the recent major BD trades, the following four categories stand out:

 

1. PD-1/VEGF Bispecific Antibodies: From “Combination Therapy” to “Molecular-Level Synergy”

PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibodies are currently one of the most globally focused target combinations in the field of tumor immunology.

At the beginning of 2026, Rongchang Bio licensed the RC148 to AbbVie, with an upfront payment of $650 million, and a potential total of about $5.6 billion;

Subsequently, 3SBio’s same-target drug SSGJ-707 was licensed to Pfizer with a $1.25 billion down payment, setting a new domestic BD down payment record;

Merck also introduced Lixin Pharmaceuticals’ LM-299, with a down payment of nearly $600 million.

The reason giants invest heavily is that bispecific antibody technology breaks through the physical limitations of traditional combination drugs. In the past, simple combinations of PD-1 inhibitors and anti-VEGF drugs were difficult to achieve synchronized action in the tumor microenvironment due to differences in the metabolic kinetics of the two large molecules. VEGF not only drives tumor angiogenesis but also inhibits dendritic cell maturation and recruits immunosuppressive cells, making the tumor microenvironment “colder.”

Bispecific antibody technology integrates two targets into the same molecule, achieving physical coupling. Through a special tetravalent structural design, when VEGF is present, it enhances the binding affinity for PD-1, making the drug more likely to enrich locally in the tumor. At the same time, the Fc segment is designed to silence and reduce the risk of nonspecific inflammation. This mechanism not only restores the cytotoxic power of T cells but also effectively improves the microenvironment.

More importantly, Chinese assets have produced clinical data with global validation value. In the HARMONi-6 study, Akeso Biologics’ ivoximab was used head-to-head with tislelizumab combined with chemotherapy for first-line advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer. The results showed a 34% reduction in mortality risk and a median overall survival of 27.9 months. This research is the first clinical achievement of an original Chinese new drug to be featured in the plenary session of ASCO in its 61-year history, with the research paper simultaneously published in The Lancet. MNC’s heavy investment aims to lock in core products in the future $100 billion immunity market. However, this sector is rapidly diverging, with capital heavily concentrated in leading assets with certain survival benefits, and followers lacking differentiated advantages will face severe elimination.

 

2. ADC: MNC is not buying a single molecule, but an engineering platform

 

The logic for going global in the ADC sector has undergone a fundamental change; giants are no longer satisfied with single-drug licensing but are turning to purchasing the entire “technology foundation.”

In October, Hansoh Pharma reached a major partnership with Roche, with a potential total value exceeding $15.5 billion, with an upfront payment of $400 million and an annual payment of $110 million. According to the agreement, the collaboration covers not only two Hansoh preclinical ADC projects but also multiple projects developed based on Roche’s proposed target platform based on Hanssen’s ADC platform. In addition, Yilian Biotech and Ying’en Biotech have also secured high-value licensing consecutively.

Targets such as TROP2, HER2, and B7-H3 are highly crowded, and MNC is truly focused on Chinese companies’ iterative capabilities in linker stability, load toxicity, and coupling processes. Early ADCs faced setbacks due to issues such as toxin release in the blood and off-target toxicity. Now, Chinese companies have significantly expanded treatment opportunities through dual-cut linker designs and novel topoisomerase inhibitor toxin optimization. For example, Hansoh Pharmaceutical’s self-developed B7-H3 ADC Ruikang Rivostatamab has successfully completed two Phase III clinical trials, with marketing applications accepted and included in priority review, while no similar cases have been approved worldwide.

This deal structure means MNC is locked in an “R&D pipeline” capable of continuously producing high-quality molecules. Under the agreement between Hansoh and Roche, Hansoh will lead early-stage development up to Global Phase Ia and has the right to choose up to two projects to participate in global development and share in U.S. commercialization revenue. For Biotech, the BD value of ADCs is rising from single project valuations to platform option valuations. As long as the underlying technology is solid, new candidates can be continuously produced for new targets in the future, which is the core reason why MNC is willing to pay a potential total of tens of billions of dollars.

 

3. Autoimmune TL1A: Betting on next-generation therapies with “multipathway blockade.”

 

In the field of autoimmunity, TL1A has been a major focus this year.

At the beginning of the year, Simcere Pharmaceuticals’ TL1A/IL-23p19 bispecific antibody SIM0709 was introduced in the preclinical stage by Boehringer Ingelheim for a total price of over 1 billion euros, with an upfront payment of 42 million euros.

Meanwhile, Merck acquired Tulisokibart and advanced Phase III through the acquisition of Prometheus, Roche acquired Telavant to acquire afimkibart,

Sanofi and Teva have reached a cooperation agreement of about $1.5 billion on duvakitug,

AbbVie has also reached a partnership with FutureGen up to $1.7 billion.

MNC’s willingness to invest heavily in early stages stems from the clinical challenges faced by existing autoimmune drugs. Currently, a significant proportion of patients respond insufficiently to TNF-α or IL-23 inhibitors, have a high risk of relapse after discontinuation, and existing therapies cannot effectively address tissue fibrosis. TL1A’s mechanistic advantage lies in its upstream of inflammatory conduction, simultaneously driving three main pathological pathologies: inflammation, fibrosis, and barrier dysfunction. When combined with IL-23, it can achieve synergistic blockade of inflammatory transmission at both upstream and downstream ends. Preclinical data from Simcere Pharmaceuticals also show that the synergistic effect of this bispecific antibody is superior to that of two drugs combined with one another. For MNC, TL1A’s value lies not only in inflammatory bowel disease but may also extend to multiple indications such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and atopic dermatitis, potentially surpassing the efficacy limits of existing drugs

4. Small nucleotide (oligonucleotide): delivery technology determines the boundaries of indications

Small nucleic acid tests are the most structured track in overseas transactions.

Frontier Biotech licensed two siRNA pipelines to GSK, with an upfront payment of $40 million and a milestone peak of $950 million;

Ribo Biotech reached a cooperation agreement with Madrigal up to approximately $4.46 billion;

Darui Biotech will license Roche to ALK7 siRNA, receiving a $100 million upfront payment and a maximum milestone payment of $1.06 billion, with a total transaction value of up to $1.16 billion;

Shengyin Biotech has also partnered with Genentech, a subsidiary of Roche. All the incoming parties are MNCs, and the targets are mainly preclinical assets.

The core of oligonucleotide technology is not in the sequence, but in “delivery.” In the past, the patent for mature liver delivery technology (GalNAc) was monopolized by overseas giant Alnylam. Today, Chinese companies have taken a different approach by developing “extrahepatic delivery platforms” that deliver to tissues such as fat, kidneys, and central nervous systems. Delivery technology directly determines the breadth of indications. For example, fat-targeted siRNA can be used for metabolic diseases and weight loss, muscle-targeted for rare myopathies, and central nervous system targeting opens up space for neurodegenerative diseases.

MNC paid tens of millions of dollars in down payments during the stage lacking human data, targeting the underlying “delivery system.” Once the system is fully validated, subsequent targets can reuse the platform. With Incslan reaching $1.198 billion in sales and Amvuttra reaching $2.314 billion by 2025, oligonucleotide is moving from the technology validation phase to the commercial realization phase, significantly expanding the market space for extrahepatic delivery.

 

5. Conclusion: From “Product Going Global” to “Technology Foundation-Based Going Global”

Considering these four main threads, the pricing logic for overseas expansion in 2026 has undergone a qualitative change: MNCs are increasingly inclined to pay early for engineering platforms, delivery systems, and molecular design capabilities. The model of relying on a single homogeneous molecule to obtain high down payments has come to an end. The ones who truly reap the premium are platform companies that can continuously produce high-quality molecules and possess global clinical development capabilities. Targets may become outdated, mechanisms may become involuted, but a platform foundation with foundational innovation capabilities will always be the hard currency heavily locked in by multinational pharmaceutical companies. The overseas expansion of Chinese innovative drugs is officially transitioning from “product export” to a new stage of “technology foundation export.”