Biotech IPOs on the Chinese mainland have dried up since June 2023 due to regulatory tightening, but Hong Kong is still open to listings of pre-revenue ventures and has seen its first offering of this year.

Shanghai-based Ark Biosciences has expanded its pipeline from the RSV-targeting drug ziresovir, licensed from Roche, to pediatric and fibrosis treatments, where there are largely untapped opportunities in China. In a strategy shift, the company is betting on the domestic market instead of going global.

The US biotech’s RSV treatment candidate has failed a Phase II study in low-risk patients leaving some experts skeptical of its hopes for potential improved performance in a high-risk setting.

In a surprise move, China has conditionally approved Pfizer’s oral COVID-19 antiviral Paxlovid, a development that may have far-reaching consequences for the country's pandemic policies and domestic drug developers.