This article only represents the author's own views.
Hong Kong has played host to dozens of innovative drug IPOs since opening up the market to such money-losing companies in 2018. In the years that followed, companies peddling everything from cutting-edge cancer drugs, to antibody treatments and more have sold shares, leaving little room for anything new to impress investors. But Beijing Sinotau International Pharmaceutical Technology Co. Ltd. is hoping to pique their curiosity nonetheless by becoming the first maker of radiopharmaceuticals to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The company, which filed its listing application last week, is jumping on a recent bandwagon that has led to a backlog of more than 150 candidates waiting to list in one of Hong Kong’s hottest IPO markets in years. As a leader in its category, Sinotau is probably hoping to follow in the footsteps of Hengrui Pharmaceuticals (1276.HK; 600276.SH), a leading Chinese innovative drug maker, which debuted strongly in its own Hong Kong IPO late last month.
Founded in 2005, Sinotau specializes in radiopharmaceuticals, or nuclear-based drugs. It is China’s first company to win regulatory approval for its innovative radiopharmaceutical drugs, and has established a full industrial chain of business capabilities, from production of radioactive nuclides for raw materials, to R&D, manufacturing and sales. The company currently has 15 pipelines covering products for use in oncology and neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases. It has four core products, two of which are commercially available.