AstraZeneca secures tie-up with Chinese firm for weight loss drugs

AstraZeneca has unveiled a tie-up with China’s CSPC Pharmaceutical Group to ramp up development of experimental weight loss and diabetes drugs in a deal worth 18.5 billion US dollars (£13.4 billion) as it looks to tap further into the booming sector.

Under the deal, the FTSE 100 pharmaceutical giant will have access to the exclusive global rights, outside China, to CSPC’s once-a-month dose technology portfolio for weight management to offer more convenient solutions to daily injections.

The companies will also collaborate on four further programmes, using CSPC’s platforms for long-acting technology and AI-driven peptide drug discovery.

Sharon Barr, executive vice president and head of biopharmaceuticals research and development at AstraZeneca, said: “This strategic collaboration advances our weight management portfolio by delivering novel assets which complement our existing programmes.

“It will provide access to CSPC’s proprietary, AI-enabled, peptide capabilities and platform technology, which have the potential to transform the treatment of obesity, helping to address adherence and convenience as key barriers to long-term therapeutic success.

“This is an important step in creating a portfolio of simple, scalable and sustainable options that can help people with obesity, and weight-related complications live better, healthier lives.”

Dongchen Cai, chairman of CSPC, added it was a “win-win collaboration”.

He said the deal will see the firms “deliver the next generation of treatments that build upon the emerging science, using our technology platforms and AstraZeneca’s complementary capabilities and reach, to realise global health benefits for people in need of improved weight management”.

It marks the latest agreement between the pair, which have already joined forces on projects, such as in artificial intelligence (AI).

For access to eight weight loss programmes in total, AstraZeneca will pay CSPC 1.2 billion dollars (£870 million) upfront, with up to a further 17.3 billion dollars (£12.6 billion) more if development and sales milestones are met.

The deal is expected to complete in the second quarter.

It sees AstraZeneca boost investment into the fast growing market for weight loss and diabetes drugs, which has until now been led by blockbuster brands Mounjaro, Ozempic and Wegovy.

It is estimated that almost three billion people worldwide are obese or overweight, according to AstraZeneca.

It said obesity is a “chronic, relapsing, multifactorial disease and contributes to over 200 complications”.