BioNTech and Fosun Pharma to Supply China with mRNA-based COVID-19 Vaccine
MAINZ, GERMANY, and SHANGHAI, CHINA, December 16, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — BioNTech SE (Nasdaq: BNTX, “BioNTech” or “the Company”) and Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical (Group) Co., Ltd. (“Fosun Pharma” or “Group”; Stock Code: 600196.SH, 02196.HK) today announced an agreement to supply Mainland China with an initial 100 million doses of their BNT162 mRNA-based vaccine candidate against COVID-19 in 2021, subject to regulatory approval. Initial supply will be delivered from BioNTech’s production facilities in Germany.
“We would like to thank the Chinese government and National Medical Products Administration for their commitment and trust in our vaccine development efforts to help address this global pandemic threat,” said Ugur Sahin, M.D., CEO and Co-founder of BioNTech. “This joint development effort with Fosun Pharma is a testament to the importance of global cooperation and reflects our strategy to supply our vaccine globally. This agreement is an important step toward our shared goal of bringing a safe and efficacious vaccine to people worldwide.”
“Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic, we have been working closely with BioNTech. With the support of the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council, especially the National Medical Products Administration, the National Health Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology and other relevant authorities, the R&D and clinical trial of our COVID-19 mRNA vaccine in China has been moved forward rapidly. On the premise of ensuring the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine, we actively support the marketing of the vaccine in China. The BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine is a successful model of international R&D collaboration,” Wu Yifang, Chairman and CEO of Fosun Pharma said. “We are pleased to reach the supply agreement with BioNTech, which is an important step in Fosun Pharma and BioNTech's efforts to achieve vaccine accessibility and affordability in China.”
In March 2020, BioNTech and Fosun Pharma announced their strategic collaboration to work jointly on the development and commercialization of a potential COVID-19 vaccine based on BioNTech’s mRNA technology platform.
On November 24, 2020, the companies initiated a Phase 2 clinical trial of vaccine candidate BNT162b2 in Jiangsu Province, China. The trial commenced with the recruitment of 960 healthy participants, between 18 to 85 years old, to assess the safety and immunogenicity of the vaccine candidate and to support future Biologic License Application (BLA) in China.
About BioNTech
Biopharmaceutical New Technologies is a next generation immunotherapy company pioneering novel therapies for cancer and other serious diseases. The Company exploits a wide array of computational discovery and therapeutic drug platforms for the rapid development of novel biopharmaceuticals. Its broad portfolio of oncology product candidates includes individualized and off-the-shelf mRNA-based therapies, innovative chimeric antigen receptor T cells, bi-specific checkpoint immuno-modulators, targeted cancer antibodies and small molecules. Based on its deep expertise in mRNA vaccine development and in-house manufacturing capabilities, BioNTech and its collaborators are developing multiple mRNA vaccine candidates for a range of infectious diseases alongside its diverse oncology pipeline. BioNTech has established a broad set of relationships with multiple global pharmaceutical collaborators, including Genmab, Sanofi, Bayer Animal Health, Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, Regeneron, Genevant, Fosun Pharma, and Pfizer. For more information, please visit www.BioNTech.de.
About Fosun Pharma
Founded in 1994, Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical (Group) Co., Ltd. (“Fosun Pharma”; stock code: 600196.SH, 02196.HK) is a leading healthcare group in China. Fosun Pharma has built a strong root in China and developed a global operation strategy, with pharmaceutical manufacturing and R&D being the largest and core business segment, together with strong presences in medical devices and diagnostics, healthcare services, pharmaceutical distribution and retail.
With R&D innovation as core driving factor, Fosun Pharma continues to optimize its pharmaceutical operations across both innovative and generic drugs. The company has established international R&D centers for excellence in areas such as innovative small molecule drugs, high-value generic drugs, biologics, and cell-therapy.
Under guidance of our 4IN strategy (Innovation, Internationalization, Integration and Intelligentization), Fosun Pharma follows the brand concept of Innovation for Good Health and strives to be a leading enterprise in the global pharmaceutical and healthcare markets.
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