On the evening of September 11, Joincare Pharmaceutical Group Industry Co., Ltd. (SHA: 600380) and Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. (SHE: 000513) released simultaneous announcements revealing that their actual controller, Zhu Baoguo, had resigned from all positions, including Chairman, due to retirement. This marks the end of an era for the veteran tycoon who built his fortune on the iconic "Madam Tai" oral liquid and navigated China's capital markets for over two decades.

The two pharmaceutical companies will now be steered by two "post-80s" professional managers, marking a generational shift at the helm of both organizations.

Simultaneous Resignation from Two Listed Pharmaceutical Firms

According to the company announcement, Zhu Baoguo resigned from his roles as Chairman, Director, Chairman of the Board's Strategy and Risk Management Committees, Chairman of the Sustainable Development Committee, legal representative, and all positions in the company's controlled subsidiaries. Following his resignation, Zhu will no longer hold any position within the company, though he remains the actual controller.

In a parallel announcement, Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. (SHE: 000513) confirmed that Zhu resigned from his positions as Chairman, Non-Executive Director, Chairman of the Board's Strategy Committee, Chairman of the Environmental, Social, and Governance Committee, and all roles in controlled subsidiaries.

Public records show that Zhu Baoguo was born in 1962 in Jiaozuo, Henan Province, and graduated from Henan Normal University's Chemistry Department in 1985. Currently, Zhu indirectly controls approximately 49% of Joincare's shares and, through Joincare, holds indirect control over Livzon. This "parent holding company with founder absolute control" structure ensures his grip on both listed firms while providing professional management teams with operational autonomy.

According to the 2026 Hurun Global Rich List released in March, the Zhu family ranked 482nd with a fortune of 59 billion yuan, maintaining their status as Zhuhai's wealthiest family, albeit 6 billion yuan lower than in 2025.

For succession, Joincare's board has elected Lin Nanqi, the company's Director and President, as the ninth board Chairman. The 44-year-old Lin previously served as Workshop Manager, Production Director, and Deputy General Manager at Livzon's Xinbeijiang Pharmaceutical subsidiary, before holding senior positions at various Joincare affiliates, including General Manager of Jiaozuo Joincare Biologics and Shenzhen Haibin Pharmaceutical. He currently holds 1.291 million shares in Joincare.

At Livzon, 39-year-old Executive Director and President Liu Daping has been appointed as the 12th board Chairman. Liu, who graduated from China Pharmaceutical University with a degree in pharmaceutical formulations, rose through the ranks from Production Director at Shenzhen Haibin Pharmaceutical to Deputy General Manager of Shenzhen TaiTai Pharmaceutical and Deputy Director of Joincare's Production Management Center. He became Vice President of Livzon in January 2024, assumed the presidency in February 2026, and became Executive Director in May of the same year.

Both new Chairmen come from production management roles within the Joincare system, with the succession viewed by the market as a classic case of "battle-tested production veterans" ascending to strategic decision-making positions.

From Chemical Technician to Pharmaceutical Titan

Zhu Baoguo's entrepreneurial journey embodies the archetype of China's first-generation private entrepreneurs in the post-reform era. In the early 1990s, the chemical technician turned entrepreneur entered the health supplement sector. In 1993, he launched "Madam Tai" oral liquid, which quickly swept the nation and created the women's health supplement market segment. His success earned him recognition alongside Shi Yuzhu, founder of "Brain Gold," with the pair dubbed the "Twin Titans of the Health Supplement Industry."

Capitalizing on the wealth generated by Madam Tai oral liquid, Zhu expanded his business empire into pharmaceuticals. In 2001, Shenzhen TaiTai Pharmaceutical was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The following year, TaiTai Pharmaceutical acquired Livzon Pharmaceutical Group, giving Zhu control of two listed companies. In 2003, TaiTai Pharmaceutical was officially renamed Joincare.

Over the subsequent two decades, Joincare evolved into a comprehensive pharmaceutical conglomerate spanning chemical preparations, biological products, chemical APIs and intermediates, traditional Chinese medicine preparations, diagnostic reagents and equipment, and health supplements. Meanwhile, Livzon has consistently maintained its position on the "Top 100 Chinese Chemical Pharmaceutical Companies" list.

The health supplement business remains a vital component of Joincare, with three national brands: "Eagle" ginseng tea, "Madam Tai" oral liquid, and "Jing Xin" oral liquid. In the first half of 2026, the health supplement segment generated 304 million yuan in sales revenue, a 25% year-on-year increase, achieving high-quality growth on an already substantial base.

In its announcement, Livzon's board praised Zhu's contributions, noting his "forward-looking industrial planning, continuous improvement of governance systems, and efforts to drive breakthroughs in innovation, R&D, product pipelines, and international expansion."

Performance Challenges and Innovative Drug Transformation

Zhu's retirement coincides with a critical juncture where both Joincare and Livzon are experiencing temporary performance pressure. In the first half of 2026, Joincare generated 6.583 billion yuan in revenue, down 16.66% year-on-year, with net profit attributable to shareholders of 648 million yuan, a 17.49% decline. Livzon recorded revenue of approximately 5 billion yuan during the same period, down 20.28%, with net profit of 932 million yuan, down 27.23%.

Joincare attributed the performance fluctuations primarily to its controlling subsidiary Livzon, whose decline was driven by multiple factors including deeper medical insurance cost containment, normalized national volume-based procurement, cyclical adjustments in the API industry, and reduced respiratory disease incidence. Livzon's key products, including the Ilaprazole Sodium series and Urinary Follitropin for injection, experienced particularly significant price reductions under medical insurance policies.

However, beneath the surface-level financial fluctuations, the business structures of both companies are undergoing meaningful long-term transformation. At Joincare, the revenue share from innovative respiratory products has climbed to nearly 35%, up from approximately 27% in the same period last year. The core product Mapasivir Capsule (Yilikang), the first Class 1 innovative chemical drug in the respiratory field, has completed provincial listing across all provinces, entered multiple key medical institutions, and formally applied for inclusion in the National Medical Insurance Drug Catalog adjustment in June 2026. Phase III clinical trials for its pediatric dry suspension formulation are also in the final enrollment stages.

The R&D pipeline includes more than 20 Class 1 innovative drugs, with over 10 in the respiratory and anti-infective fields. A TSLP monoclonal antibody targeting COPD has entered Phase III clinical trials, while an oral COPD anti-inflammatory PREP inhibitor is in Phase IIa.

Livzon is similarly in a period of intensive innovation delivery. In the first half of 2026, the potassium-competitive acid blocker JP-1366 for reflux esophagitis entered the marketing review stage. In the assisted reproduction field, recombinant human follitropin alfa injection (pre-filled pen) received marketing approval in June. In the autoimmune space, Laikonchikimab (IL-17A/F bispecific antibody), China's first self-developed Class 1 innovative biologic demonstrating superior efficacy in head-to-head clinical trials against secukinumab, received approval for psoriasis in August, with the ankylosing spondylitis indication application also accepted.

Livzon management indicated at its August earnings call that the concentrated medical insurance price cuts and procurement impacts occurring in 2026 would gradually stabilize as related products transition to a relatively stable pricing system in the coming period.

Industry observers note that what Zhu Baoguo leaves behind is not just a capital ecosystem spanning health supplements and pharmaceuticals, but also a transformation path that has begun but remains incomplete. The real test facing the two "post-80s" Chairmen is whether they can convert the clinical value of their innovation pipelines into sustainable financial returns amid the continued contraction of traditional business revenue pools. As of the September 11 market close, Joincare's A-shares stood at 9.24 yuan per share, with a total market value of 16.9 billion yuan, while Livzon's A-shares closed at 26.62 yuan, with a market value of 23.6 billion yuan.