The Milestone

China’s Share of Billion-Dollar Partnering Deals Is Rising

What the Data Tells Us

  1. China-origin assets now make up 12% of all deals, up from 2% in 2018–19.

    2018–19Last 12 mo
    12%
    of deals signed in the last 12 months, against 2% in 2018–19

  2. Buyers pay about 65% more upfront for China-origin assets than for similar deals.

    ChinaOthers
    $25M
    median upfront, against $15M for comparable deals

  3. About one in five large pharma deals now involves a China-origin asset, up from almost none in 2018–19.

    2018–19Last 12 mo
    18%
    of large pharma’s deals in the last 12 months, against 0% in 2018–19
The Rise

How China’s Share of Dealmaking Grew

2%20181%20193%20204%20215%20228%20237%202414%202512%2026 YTDMerck & Co. ← Kelun-Biotech · $9.5BGSK ← Hengrui Pharma · $12BAstraZeneca ← CSPC Pharmaceutical · $18.5B
The Novelty Factor

From Fast Follower to Originator

2018–Oct 2026

First in Class, by Period

China-originEveryone else
0%50%100% 58%55%57%25%48%54% 2018–212022–232024–26

First in Class, by Modality

Bispecifics71%
ADCs71%
Small molecules36%
Antibodies22%

In 2018–21, 90% of China-origin assets were on well-validated targets, the profile of a fast follower.

First in class: no approved drug works the same way. Share of deals where this was assessed.

Upfront Pricing

Upfront Payments by Stage

2018–Oct 2026

China-originComparable deals
Preclinical
$12.5M$22M
1.8×
Phase 1
$16M$40M
2.5×
Phase 2
$35.1M$30M
15% less
Phase 3 and later
$19M$20M
1.1×

Median partnering upfront incl. equity, matched on stage, buyer size, recorded rights and signing period. Deal terms and asset characteristics may differ; the comparison is descriptive.

Deal Value

Total Deal Value Against the Market

$1.1B China $339M Others

The median disclosed total deal value is $1.1B for China-origin partnering deals and $339M for other partnering deals.

Unadjusted medians for benchmark-eligible deals with disclosed totals. Headline values may include contingent milestones. The other group includes deals of unknown origin, and the deal mixes may differ.

The Science

What China Is Selling

2018–Oct 2026

Share of China-origin dealsRest of library

Therapeutic Area

Modality

Development Stage

Select a row to list those deals.

The Buyers

Who Buys, Who Sells

Most Active Buyers

2018–Oct 2026

EarlierLast 12 months
14
9
8
7
7
6

Most Active Sellers

2018–Oct 2026

EarlierLast 12 months
17
15
11
10
9
8

Buyers by Company Size

2018–Oct 2026

China-origin dealsRest of library
Large pharma
35%
27%
Mid-size
8%
9%
Small biotech
50%
56%
The Landmarks

The Biggest China-Origin Deals

All China-Origin Deals

DateDealTypeStageTherapeutic areaIndicationModalityUpfront (incl. equity)Total
19 Oct 2026Two preclinical ADC programmes plus Roche-target ADC disco…LicensePreclinicalOncologyMultiple cancer types; specific tumour populatio…Antibody-drug conjugate (ADC)$400M—
29 Sep 2026HRS-1596LicensePreclinicalMetabolicobesity and type 2 diabetesSmall molecule$300M$2.6B
10 Sep 2026Masked CD3 T-cell engagers (SAFEbody); first lead selectio…LicensePreclinicalOncologyCancerBispecific/multispecific antibody——
2 Sep 2026Stapokibart (CM310; Kangyueda)LicenseFiled or ApprovedImmunologyAtopic dermatitis; Chronic rhinosinusitis with n…Antibody therapeutic——
1 Sep 2026SIM0660LicensePreclinicalImmunologyB-cell-mediated diseases; B-cell-mediated autoim…Bispecific/multispecific antibody$75M$1.5B
28 Aug 2026DUPAC novel-payload ADC collaborationResearch collaborationDiscoveryOncologySolid tumorsAntibody-drug conjugate (ADC)$45M—
28 Aug 2026CRT-403; CRT-401; CD19 × BCMA RetroT programResearch collaborationDiscoveryMultipleAutoimmune diseases; Solid tumorsGene therapy——
25 Aug 2026Undisclosed oral immunology small moleculeLicensePreclinicalImmunologyType 2 inflammatory diseases; Inflammatory disea…Small molecule$75.9M$1.5B
17 Aug 2026Up to 10 proposed mAb and ADC biosimilars; the initial thr…Option to license—OncologyMetastatic colorectal cancer; Head and neck squa…Antibody therapeutic—$322M
10 Aug 2026bofanglutide; GZR18LicensePhase 3MetabolicObesity; Overweight; Type 2 diabetes mellitus (a…Peptide therapeutic$71.6M$839M

Showing up to 10 example deals for the selected view.

Appendix: How We Count

What counts. Therapeutics deals in the Deal Library where the asset or company originates in China. The rest of the library includes deals of unknown origin, so it is not a verified non-China group.

Comparisons. “Rest of library” means every other deal in the library. Partnering covers licenses, options, research collaborations, co-development and asset acquisitions; acquisitions of whole companies are compared separately. Missing figures are never counted as zero. Upfront comparisons are like for like: medians are matched on stage, buyer size, rights and signing period. Trends compare the last 12 months with 2018–19.

Coverage. The library is still growing; it is not a complete census. Activity includes countable public Library records with dates within the reporting window. Pricing uses the benchmark-eligible analytical cohort. Library as of 23 Oct 2026.

Info

A Deal Library report on deals for drugs and companies originating in China.