Chinese Biotech Companies Are Catching Up To U.S. large Pharma

China’s biotechnology sector is rapidly transforming from a follower into a global leader in pharmaceutical innovation, challenging the long-standing dominance of the United States and Europe, according to a new longform writeup by Bloomberg.

Since regulatory reforms began in 2015, the number of innovative drugs originating from China has surged from just 160 to over 1,250 in 2024, nearly matching the U.S.’s 1,440. Once known for low-cost generics and quality issues, Chinese drugmakers are now producing cutting-edge therapies that are drawing global recognition and investment.

“The scale itself is not something we’ve seen before,” said Helen Chen, managing partner at LEK Consulting. “The products are here, they’re attractive and they’re fast.”

China’s progress is not only in volume but also in quality. Regulators such as the U.S. FDA and the European Medicines Agency are increasingly awarding Chinese drugs designations like priority review and breakthrough therapy, once reserved for top-tier Western innovations.

While the absolute number of approvals still trails behind the U.S., the growth trend is unmistakable. “It wouldn’t be sensationalist to suggest that China will overtake the US in the next few years purely in terms of numbers,” said Daniel Chancellor of Norstella.

A notable example is a blood cancer cell therapy developed by Legend Biotech in China, now marketed globally with Johnson & Johnson, and seen as superior to a U.S.-developed rival.

Bloomberg writes that global pharmaceutical companies are taking notice. Deals involving Chinese biotech firms are increasing in size and frequency. Summit Therapeutics paid $500 million upfront for rights to a Chinese cancer drug that outperformed Merck’s Keytruda in a local trial.

Pfizer recently set a record with a $1.2 billion upfront payment to 3SBio for a similar therapy. “They can leapfrog competitors in other countries,” said Andy Liu of Novotech, a clinical research firm.

China’s edge comes from its ability to conduct drug research faster and more cheaply, thanks to its centralized hospital system and large patient base. Early-stage cancer and obesity trials in China can enroll patients in half the time it takes in the U.S. Still, Chinese firms must show their results hold up across diverse populations to gain regulatory approval in the U.S. and Europe.

The innovation surge is being led by both foreign-educated startup founders and legacy firms like Jiangsu Hengrui, which pivoted from generics to R&D after domestic policy changes. From 2020 to 2024, 20 of the world’s top 50 companies for new drug candidates were Chinese, up from just five in the previous five years.

“As we move forward, the fact that there’s high quality innovation in China… will no longer be a novelty,” said Ali Pashazadeh of Treehill Partners. “It’ll just be an accepted part of the norm.”

Still, the U.S. sees biotech as part of a broader strategic rivalry. “Biotech is one of the forefronts of the US-China tech rivalry,” said Jack Burnham from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.