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Hyphens Pharma has inked exclusive licensing deal of Ustekinumab biosimilar for Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines

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Press Release 

Singapore, 14 December 2021 – Hyphens Pharma International Limited (“Hyphens Pharma”, “凯帆药剂国际有限公司”, or the “Company”, and together with its subsidiaries, the “Group”), Singapore’s leading specialty pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare group, is pleased to announce that its subsidiary, Hyphens Pharma Pte. Ltd., has signed an exclusive license and supply agreement with DKSH’s subsidiary, Favorex Pte Ltd, to commercialise Ustekinumab biosimilar produced by Alvotech Hf (“Alvotech”), in Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines (“Territories”).

Alvotech (www.alvotech.com) is a multinational biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the development and manufacturing of high quality biosimilars1 for global markets. The proposed Ustekinumab biosimilar, which is undergoing clinical studies, is a human monoclonal antibody that targets interleukin-12 (“IL-12”) and interleukin-23 (“IL-23”) for the treatment of immune mediated disorders like plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and Crohn’s disease. According to an article in Nature earlier this year, the worldwide sales of Ustekinumab was estimated to reach US$ 8.4 billion in 2021.2

Mr Lim See Wah, (“林世华”) Executive Chairman and CEO of Hyphens Pharma commented: “Dermatology is one of our focus areas and we want to bring to market innovative medical dermatological products to meet the needs of patients suffering from various skin disorders. We were interested to add Ustekinumab to our product portfolio because of its dermatology indications, which we believe will help to enhance our dermatology product offerings for Asia.”

Mr Peter Dolinsky, Vice President, Own Brands Healthcare, Asia Pacific, DKSH, remarked: “We are excited to partner with Hyphens Pharma to help bring Alvotech’s Ustekinumab product to Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines. We are committed to bringing high-quality medical products to Asian patients and believe that biosimilars have a tremendous opportunity to enhance the standard of care for several diseases across Asian markets.”

The exclusive license and supply agreement will not have a material effect on the net tangible assets or earnings per share of the Group for the financial year ending 31 December 2021.

 

1 A biosimilar is a biologic medical product, highly similar to an already approved biological medicine. Unlike generic drugs, biosimilars are not exact copies of an existing drug’s chemical composition, but “highly similar”, meaning close enough in duplication to accomplish the same therapeutic and clinical results.

2 Extracted on 3 December 2021 from “Top product forecasts for 2021”, Nature, January 2021, Volume 20, page 10. https://media.nature.com/original/magazine-assets/d41573-020-00219-5/d41573-020-00219-5.pdf

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About DKSH (www.dksh.com/hec)

DKSH’s purpose is to enrich people’s lives. For more than 150 years, we have been delivering growth for companies in Asia and beyond across our Business Units Healthcare, Consumer Goods, Performance Materials and Technology. As a leading Market Expansion Services provider, we offer sourcing, market insights, marketing and sales, eCommerce, distribution and logistics as well as after-sales services. Listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange, DKSH operates in 36 markets with 32,450 specialists, generating net sales of CHF 10.7 billion in 2020. The DKSH Business Unit Healthcare distributes pharmaceuticals, consumer health and over-the-counter (OTC) products as well as medical devices. With around 7,970 specialists, the Business Unit generated net sales of CHF 5.4 billion in 2020.

For further information on DKSH, please contact:

DKSH Business Unit Healthcare
Sheena Flannery
Director, Group Communications
Phone: +66 2 220 9739<
Email: [email protected]

 

About Hyphens Pharma International Limited

Hyphens Pharma International Limited and its subsidiaries (the “Group“) is Singapore’s leading specialty pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare group, leveraging on its diverse footprint in ASEAN countries. The Group has a direct presence in Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, and is supplemented by a marketing and distribution network covering 10 other markets – Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong S.A.R., Macau S.A.R., Myanmar, Oman, South Korea and Sri Lanka.

Singapore is the Group’s regional headquarters, where its strategic planning, finance, regulatory affairs, research and development, legal, business development and logistics operations are based. The Group’s core business comprises the following segments: Specialty Pharma Principals, Proprietary Brands, and Medical Hypermart & Digital. Besides marketing and selling a range of specialty pharmaceutical products in selected ASEAN countries through exclusive distributorship or licensing and supply agreements with brand principals mainly from Europe and the United States, the Group also develops, markets and sells its own proprietary range of dermatological products and health supplement products. In addition, the Group operates a medical hypermart for healthcare professionals, healthcare institutions and retail pharmacies, to supply pharmaceutical products and medical supplies.

For more information, please visit https://www.hyphensgroup.com

Issued on behalf of Hyphens Pharma International Limited

For enquiries, please contact:
Ms Foo En Yun, Tel: (65) 6704 9284, Mob: (65) 8180 3641, Email: [email protected]
Mr Gerald Woon, Tel: (65) 6704 9268, Mob: (65) 9694 8364, Email: [email protected]

This media release has been reviewed by the Company’s sponsor, SAC Capital Private Limited (the “Sponsor”). It has not been examined or approved by the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (the “SGX-ST”) and the SGX-ST assumes no responsibility for the contents of this media release, including the correctness of any of the statements or opinions made or reports contained in this media release.

The contact person for the Sponsor is Ms Lee Khai Yinn (Tel: (65) 6232 3210) at 1 Robinson Road, #21-00 AIA Tower, Singapore 048542.