October 27, 2025, the Capital Market Forum of the 10th China BioMed Innovation and Investment Conference (CBIIC) was successfully held. The forum focused on three major sections: macro-development trends in the healthcare industry, and the dynamics of listing review and issuance for pharmaceutical companies both domestically and internationally. It comprehensively analyzed the profound impact of macro markets and financial policies on innovation in the pharmaceutical industry.

WANG Tianqi, Vice President, Healthcare Group of CITIC served as moderator of the forum

In the opening speech, CHENG Jie, Executive Member of Global Investment Banking Committee, Head of Healthcare IBDe, Managing Director, CITICS, pointed out that as a strategic industry related to national economy and people’s livelihood, China’s medical and health industry is undergoing a crucial transformation from “high-speed growth” to “high-quality development”. At present, the development trend of China’s medical and health industry is mainly driven by three powerful core forces: “sustained policy guidance and in-depth reform”, “breakthroughs in cutting-edge technologies and value revaluation of the overseas expansion wave”, and “unmet clinical needs and consumption upgrading”. With the intensification of population aging and the improvement of residents’ health awareness, the society’s demand for high-quality, diversified and affordable healthcare services continues to be released, bringing enormous market growth to the entire industrial chain of innovative drugs and medical devices, medical services, and health management. The huge market demand and the increasingly improved and more inclusive A-share and Hong Kong stock markets have provided Chinese innovative entities in drugs and medical devices with smoother and more diversified financing channels and development paths, which is crucial for the original innovation of the pharmaceutical industry. CITIC Securities has always regarded healthcare as a core strategic direction, and is willing to work with outstanding entrepreneurs, innovators and investors around the world to jointly contribute to promoting the rise and prosperity of China’s healthcare industry, serving Healthy China and the real economy.

Remarks by CHENG Jie

Topic 1：Trends in the healthcare industry and outlook for the 15th Five-Year Plan

Oliver QI, CFO of MediTrust Health, first shared a series of explorations and practices in AI Empowerment and Diversified Payment Support for the Development of Innovative Medical Devices. He pointed out that a major challenge currently facing China’s medical and health industry is that despite continuous increased investment in national basic medical insurance, residents still face considerable pressure on medical expenses. As a core driver of China’s booming innovative pharmaceutical and medical device market, multi-payment platforms for healthcare are embracing enormous development opportunities. Factors including enhanced R&D capabilities, policy dividends, and an improved multi-payment system are prompting higher-quality growth in the innovative drug and device market. Data from the White Paper on Multi-Channel Payment for Innovative Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices in China, jointly released by PhIRDA and MediTrust Health among other institutions, shows that by 2035, China’s innovative pharmaceutical and medical device market will reach 1 trillion CNY, with commercial insurance accounting for 440 billion CNY and becoming the largest payer. As a multi-payment platform connecting pharmaceutical enterprises, insurers and patients to support the innovative development of the healthcare industry, MediTrust Health is committed to continuously contributing to advancing healthcare accessibility, improving public health and well-being, supporting the development of a multi-tiered medical security system, and building a future society with greater well-being.

Oliver QI delivered keynote speech

CHEN Zhu, Chief Healthcare Analyst, CITICS, and other forum guests jointly outlooked the policies and future development directions of the healthcare industry. CHEN Zhu noted that China is currently in a stage of moderate aging, with rising demand for elderly care, health rehabilitation, and disability support services. The National Healthcare Security Administration has prioritized the development of long-term care insurance as the “Sixth Insurance” in the “Six Social Insurances and One Housing Fund”, covering approximately 188 million people across 49 pilot cities. With the normalization of national bulk procurement and continuous policy optimization, the 11th round of national procurement is expected to set a benchmark against “involution”, moving away from simply selecting the lowest bid price. Regarding national price negotiations, he expected that more innovative drugs will likely be prioritized for inclusion in commercial insurance innovative drug catalogs rather than the national negotiation basic catalog, guiding pharmaceutical companies to pursue “genuine innovation”. Meanwhile, price reductions for drugs within the agreement period will be reasonably controlled to stabilize pricing expectations for new medicines. Since 2025, the state has intensively issued a series of policies supporting the development of innovative pharmaceuticals and medical devices. CHEN Zhu believes that commercial health insurance innovative drug catalogs and commercial health insurance will play a vital role in easing the pressure on medical insurance funds, driving innovation in the pharmaceutical and device industry, and reducing the financial burden on the public.

CHEN Zhu delivered keynote speech

The first topic of the forum concluded with a panel discussion entitled “Analysis of the Development and Investment Opportunities in the Medical and Health Industry” where Glenn HOU, Founding Partner of CIC, served as the moderator, joined by six other panelists: Kevin YUAN, Founder & CEO, Hankang Capital; XIE Ting, Managing Director, Hillhouse; HUANG Lu, Managing Director, Morningside Ventures; TAO Feng, Founding Partner, BioTrack Capital; Sylvia HE, Managing Partner, Hyfinity Investments; and CHEN Zhu, Chief Healthcare Analyst, CITICS. The panelists agreed that original innovation capacity, translational capability of basic research, pace of global expansion, and value of global business development(BD) collaboration are the core factors for judging the investment value of innovative entities. Although the healthcare industry is significantly affected by policy changes and geopolitical dynamics, the sector features substantial unmet clinical needs and continuously evolving technological innovation. In the long run, healthcare—especially the innovative drug segment—will maintain robust growth and remain in a golden investment period for the long term.

Panel 1: Analysis of the Development and Investment Opportunities in the Medical and Health Industry

Topic 2：Updates on Domestic IPO Review and Issuance Processes for Enterprises

The second theme of the forum, “Updates on Domestic IPO Review and Issuance Processes for Enterprises”, kicked off with a keynote speech delivered by a senior official from the business department of the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) entitled “Comprehensively Deepening Capital Market Reform and Opening Up to Drive the Synergistic Development of Technological and Industrial Innovation”. The official from the SSE business department pointed out that from January to September 2025, 78 companies completed IPOs on the A-share market, raising approximately 77.3 billion CNY. Among them, 8 were listed on the Sci-Tech Innovation Board(STAR Market) with a total fundraising of about 8.1 billion CNY, and 17 on the Shanghai Main Board with about 37.3 billion CNY. A total of 36 new IPO applications were accepted by the SSE, including 26 on the STAR Market and 10 on the Shanghai Main Board, showing a sound overall momentum. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, 224 biomedical companies completed IPOs on the SSE, making it the world’s third-largest listing destination for biomedical enterprises. Among the 20 companies listed under the Fifth Set of Criteria, 19 have launched core products, and 16 have achieved revenues exceeding 100 million CNY, including 4 with revenues surpassing 1 billion CNY, demonstrating remarkable results of the STAR Market in supporting new-quality productive forces. Subsequently, he elaborated on the “1+6” policy framework for the STAR Market, the policy system of the “Several Opinions on Strengthening Supervision, Preventing Risks and Promoting High-Quality Development of the Capital Market”(National Nine Articles), and the relevant systems of the “Eight Measures on Deepening the Reform of the STAR Market to Serve Scientific and Technological Innovation and the Development of New-quality Productivity”, and made a detailed comparison among different domestic listing segments. In the future, the SSE will take the establishment of a dedicated tier on the STAR Market as a key measure, restart the application of the Fifth Set of Criteria for unprofitable enterprises on the STAR Market, and launch a package of more inclusive and adaptive institutional reforms.These efforts will better serve scientific and technological innovation and new-quality productive forces, while further strengthening the protection of the legitimate rights and interests of small and medium-sized investors.

YANG Qin, Director, Healthcare Group of CITIC., shared his views on the recent A-share IPO market environment with the guests. YANG Qin stated that the pace of A-share IPOs is cyclical, and the current round of adjustment is approaching its end. The new “National Nine Articles” have imposed stricter overall supervision on corporate listing and issuance activities, yet high-tech and innovative enterprises still enjoy policy preferences for A-share IPOs. He comprehensively analyzed data including the processing time, number of applications, approval of issuance, and listing status of IPOs on the Main Board Market, STAR Market, ChiNext and Beijing Stock Exchange, and elaborated on the review policies and key focus areas of each A-share segment.

YANG Qin delivered keynote speech

Topic 2 of the forum concluded with a panel discussion entitled “Opportunities and Challenges for Pre-Revenue Innovative Drug Companies Under the Fifth Set of Standards for the STAR Market”. Felix FEI, Wellness Sector Co-leader of Greater China, Shanghai Branch, Ernst Young Hua Ming LLP, served as the moderator, joined by four other panelists: Inger CHEN, Board Secretary, Biokin Pharmaceutical; Jiang Yueheng, Deputy General Manager and Secretary of the Board of Directors of Yifang Biotech; YANG Qin, Director, Healthcare Group of CITIC; and Raymond ZHU, China Central Tax Leader, EY. The panelists agreed that the reform policies of the STAR Market are more inclusive and advanced. For innovative enterprises, the capital chain is crucial. Both the STAR Market and the Hong Kong capital market play a vital role in helping innovative R&D-oriented enterprises, as the funds raised can sustain continuous R&D investment. BD transaction cases and key progress in clinical research will both affect the value and valuation of enterprises. To gain a foothold in the capital market, enterprises must strengthen their “internal capabilities”.

Panel 2: Opportunities and Challenges for Pre-Revenue Innovative Drug Companies Under the Fifth Set of Standards for the STAR Market

Topic 3：Updates on Overseas IPO Review and Issuance Processes for Enterprises

ZHOU Shufan, Securities Director, CITIC, shared updates on the Hong Kong capital market for the healthcare industry with the guests, kicking off Topic 3 of the forum, “Overview of Developments in the Hong Kong Stock Capital Market for the Healthcare Industry”. ZHOU Shufan pointed out that since the beginning of this year, the Hong Kong stock healthcare sector has shown a significant rebound compared with the past few years. Secondary market performance of various pharmaceutical innovation entities has been sound, with an average share price increase of over 100% excluding traditional Chinese medicine. Up to now, more than 50 innovation entities in the healthcare sector have filed for IPO in Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong capital market will continue to support the innovative development of the real economy such as innovative drugs, medical services and high-end medical devices. Finally, he elaborated on relevant experience and practical cases including cornerstone investors, placement and the new Hong Kong stock market rules issued in 2025.

ZHOU Shufan delivered keynote speech

TAO Xudong, Partner, JunHe LLP, shared case analyses and practical experience on overseas listing with the participants under the title “Instrumental Tactics on CSRC Filing for Overseas IPO”. Starting from the actual issues feedback by Hong Kong and U.S. stock exchanges, Lawyer TAO Xudong detailed the new rules and relevant procedures for overseas listing and filing to the participants. He also comprehensively interpreted the key difficulties and review risk points related to overseas listing from multiple dimensions, including the status of major shareholders, equity changes, shareholder verification, shareholding on behalf of others, equity incentives, actual controllers, state-owned equity management, foreign capital access, and compliance, combined with practical cases. This provided practical opinions and suggestions for various innovative entities seeking overseas listing.

TAO Xudong delivered keynote speech

Grace XIAO, Assurance Partner at Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP, delivered a speech entitled “Key Financial Focus of Listing on Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX)”. She introduced financial preparation for enterprises seeking listing in Hong Kong, and shared with the audience the core focuses of the HKEX in its review and the advance preparations enterprises need to make, covering common financial issues for biotech companies in recent years, including restructuring, revenue recognition, R&D expenses and intangible assets, share-based payment, and related party transaction disclosure. Grace XIAO pointed out that enterprise listing is a systematic project involving finance, legal affairs, business operations and other aspects, among which financial preparation is particularly demanding. Especially for key financial issues under listing review, enterprises need to conduct systematic sorting and response in advance, and address these issues in a planned, targeted and forward-looking manner to ensure a smooth listing. In addition, A-share listed companies planning to list in Hong Kong should also pay attention to the consistency between A-share financial data disclosure and the financial information submitted to HKEX.

Grace XIAO delivered keynote speech

The forum concluded with a panel discussion entitled “Key Considerations for Pharmaceutical Companies Seeking Overseas Listings and Post-IPO Business Expansion Opportunities”, where Gwen WONG, Managing Partner of Sullivan & Cromwell’s Beijing Office, served as the moderator, joined by six other panelists including LIN Ching Yang, Partner of Sullivan & Cromwell’s Hong Kong Office, QI Guodong, CEO, Shanghai Shengdi Private Equity Fund Management Co., Ltd., ZHANG Shaoren, Executive director and Vice president of Finance, DualityBio, David LIN, Executive Director and Deputy General Manager, Qyuns Therapeutics, TAO Xudong, Partner, JunHe LLP, and Jane YANG, Managing Partner of Beijing Office, Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP. Panelists all agreed that certainty, predictability, liquidity and valuation in the capital market are four important evaluation indicators for enterprises when choosing a listing venue. There are various forms of corporate equity financing. Beyond listing on domestic and overseas capital markets, enterprises can also support the development of biopharmaceutical companies through multiple approaches such as mergers and acquisitions and restructuring. Various forms of licensing and business development (BD) collaborations that have emerged in recent years can also help enterprises raise capital and further fuel their growth. An IPO represents a starting point for high-quality development, rather than the finish line. Since October 2024, China’s capital market has witnessed booming vitality and a steady, positive trend. It is hoped that all pharmaceutical innovation enterprises will seize this window of opportunity and contribute to building a global community of health for all.

Panel 3: Key Considerations for Pharmaceutical Companies Seeking Overseas Listings and Post-IPO Business Expansion Opportunities

Capital Market Forum