(Bloomberg) -- Kyowa Kirin Co. will sell its China business to a company in Hong Kong for ¥15 billion ($100 million), as the Japanese drugmaker restructures its business in the broader Asia Pacific region to drive growth.
The Tokyo-based drugmaker will transfer shares of its China entity to Hong Kong WinHealth Pharma Group Co. while it also struck a deal with DKSH Holding Ltd to market its drugs in other parts of the Asia Pacific region, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
The company cited “external environmental changes” for the restructuring and sale of its Chinese business, without providing further details. It expects the sale of its China entity to be completed by the end of September.
The restructuring came as Kyowa Kirin is doubling down on gene therapies and rare diseases. The company in January completed the acquisition of Orchard Therapeutics Plc, whose gene treatment for a rare disease called metachromatic leukodystrophy has become the world’s most expensive drug, selling at $4.25 million in the US.
Kyowa Kirin entered China in the early 1990s and has been selling medicines for blood disorders, cancer and kidney diseases there. In recent years, the company has brought in more medicines for rare diseases to the China market as Beijing works to improve access to life-saving medicines and make them more affordable. It also expanded its production facility in Shanghai in 2023.
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