China Has 21 of Asia-Pacific's 30 Obesity Drug Candidates, South Korea Follows With Six

China Accounts for 70% of Asia-Pacific Obesity Drug Candidates
South Korea Has Six in Development, Led by Hanmi Pharmaceutical
Upfront Payments from Overseas Pharma Companies Exceed $1 Billion

China is dominating the development of next-generation obesity treatments in the Asia-Pacific region. As companies across Asia lead the pipeline of drugs to follow semaglutide and tirzepatide, many of the candidates are being developed by Chinese companies. South Korea is following China, led by Hanmi Pharmaceutical.

According to BioPharma APAC, a specialist biotechnology and pharmaceutical publication covering the Asia-Pacific region, as of October 31, 30 obesity and weight-management drug candidates discovered by companies in the region had reached the clinical-trial stage or beyond. By country, there were 21 candidates in China, six in South Korea, two in Japan and one in India. No clinical trials registered as obesity treatments were identified for candidates developed in Australia, Taiwan or Singapore.

Three of the 30 candidates have been approved. Orforglipron, an oral drug discovered by Japan's Chugai Pharmaceutical and developed globally by Eli Lilly, received U.S. approval in April this year. Ecnoglutide, developed by China's Sciwind, was approved as a weight-management treatment by China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in March. In October, Hanmi Pharmaceutical's efpeglenatide became the first obesity treatment developed domestically in South Korea.

Three GLP-1/GIP dual agonists developed by Chinese companies are awaiting NMPA approval. Separately, seven candidates have completed or are undergoing Phase 3 trials, while three have begun Phase 3 trials. Of the seven candidates in Phase 1 or Phase 2, four are being developed by Chinese companies, two by South Korean companies and one by an Indian company.

Hanmi Pharmaceutical developed three of the six candidates from South Korean companies. The two candidates in Phase 1 or Phase 2 are Hanmi Pharmaceutical's HM15275 and Dong-A ST's DA-1726. Seven candidates are in clinical trials, but specific weight-loss figures have not been disclosed; they include PG-102 from Progen, an affiliate of Yuhan Corporation; Hanmi Pharmaceutical's HM17321; and LG Chem's LB54640.

Ildong Pharmaceutical's ID110521156 and D&D Pharmatech's jabopregdutide (DD01) were excluded from the list. ID110521156 was tested only in healthy volunteers, while jabopregdutide is being studied in a clinical trial for fatty liver disease, not obesity.

Chinese companies are focusing their development efforts on dual agonists. Five companies in China are concentrating on GLP-1/GIP dual agonists, making the competition extremely intense. The Bioeconomy Research Center of the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization (KoreaBIO) expects price, supply capacity and dosing intervals, rather than the amount of weight lost, to become the key factors in future competition.

In the obesity drug development market, oral drugs are establishing a weight-loss range of 10% to 12%. Orforglipron produced a weight reduction of 11.2% at week 72, while Chinese oral drugs showed reductions of 9.8% to 12.4% at weeks 44 to 52. All are small-molecule compounds taken once daily, and their weight-loss effects are lower than those of leading injectable drugs. These oral drugs are expected to compete on convenience, manufacturing costs and accessibility rather than the amount of weight lost.

Just a year ago, the Asia-Pacific obesity drug pipeline was focused mainly on out-licensing. This year, one oral drug has been approved in the United States and two treatments have been approved in Asian countries. Results from numerous Phase 3 trials are also expected, including those for three candidates submitted for approval to Chinese authorities.

Rights to 13 of the 30 candidates are held by licensees or European partners outside the Asia-Pacific region, or by global license holders. Disclosed upfront payments for deals involving Lilly, Kailera, Regeneron, Novo Nordisk, AstraZeneca, Merck and Genentech totaled approximately $1.04 billion (approximately KRW 1.39 trillion), excluding Menarini's €62 million (approximately KRW 92.5 billion).

The two most valuable early-stage deals targeted muscle mass. They were Genentech's collaboration on Hanmi Pharmaceutical's HM17321 and Lilly's clinical collaboration with Laekna; neither is related to incretins. Both projects aim to reduce body fat while maintaining muscle mass. The Bioeconomy Research Center identified muscle mass as the next frontier.

The Bioeconomy Research Center said that although clinical data are difficult to compare directly, a substantial number of next-generation weight-loss treatments set to launch in the future will include intellectual property developed in Asia.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.