Significant changes have taken place in the executive team of CSPC Pharmaceutical Group. Former CEO Zhang Cuilong has been reassigned but will remain as an executive director. Meanwhile, the group has officially appointed Cai Lei as the new Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman, while Wei Qingjie has been named Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer.

What kind of CSPC Pharmaceutical Group is this new leadership team inheriting? How strong is the company’s foundation? Let’s find answers through key data.

**01 Sustained Strength: Data-Backed Leadership** To gauge a pharmaceutical giant’s true standing in the industry, the "Top 100 Chinese Pharmaceutical Companies by Revenue" ranking—commonly referred to as the Pharma Top 100—serves as a definitive benchmark. Based on objective data from the *China Pharmaceutical Industry Statistical Annual Report*, CSPC’s ranking has shown a robust and steady upward trajectory in recent years.

The consistent rise reflects CSPC’s strategic resilience amid normalized volume-based procurement and intensifying competition in innovative drugs, driven by its increasing share of revenue from novel drugs and accelerated global expansion.

As of now, CSPC has secured approvals for five Class 1 innovative drugs. The proportion of revenue from innovative drugs in MAT25Q2 has significantly increased compared to MAT19Q2. Globally, 83 new drugs are in various stages of clinical trials. The company’s licensing-out deals have grown year-on-year, with four transactions in 2025 totaling $9.71 billion.

Behind these numbers lies CSPC’s deep and diversified R&D pipeline and product matrix—the true engine sustaining its leadership position.

**02 Future Foundations: Breakthroughs in the Pipeline** CSPC has established eight technology platforms, including ADC, bispecific antibodies, nanomedicines, mRNA, siRNA, and cell therapy. Its extensive pipeline features several potential "global first-in-class" blockbusters. Among 178 projects in development, approximately 10% are in Phase III, 13% in Phase II, and 23% in Phase I. The growing proportion of late-stage projects enhances commercialization certainty.

For instance, SYS6002 (Nectin-4 ADC), one of over a dozen promising ADCs in clinical trials, was licensed to Corbus Pharmaceuticals in February 2023 for $692.5 million ($75 million upfront + $617.5 million milestones), marking one of the highest-value outbound ADC deals by a Chinese company that year. The drug received FDA Fast Track designation in December 2024 and again in September 2025, with Phase III registration trials for recurrent/metastatic cervical cancer now underway.

Similarly, SYSA1801 (Claudin 18.2 ADC) was licensed out as early as July 2022, validating CSPC’s replicable "R&D-to-globalization" model alongside Nectin-4 ADC.

R&D investment remains robust: ¥4.83 billion in 2023, ¥5.191 billion in 2024, and approximately ¥4.19 billion (up 7.9% YoY) in the first three quarters of 2025. As more Phase III data emerges and overseas approvals materialize, CSPC’s R&D efficiency is expected to fuel its next growth phase.

**03 Leadership Shift: Steering Dual Growth Engines** The key question is how the new team will navigate CSPC’s dual strategy of "innovation" and "globalization," now in full acceleration.

On one front, the innovation engine is roaring. A high-value pipeline is entering a harvest period, particularly in cutting-edge areas like ADC, where critical Phase III trials are advancing rapidly. This demands exceptional R&D decision-making and global regulatory expertise to efficiently translate scientific achievements into marketable products.

On the other, globalization is in full swing. From high-value licensing deals to direct filings in the US and Europe, CSPC’s international expansion has evolved from product exports to end-to-end overseas operations encompassing R&D, registration, and commercialization. Leaders must now combine deep local market knowledge with global vision and cross-border resource integration.

The new executives’ backgrounds align well with CSPC’s current phase of "innovation realization + global commercialization." Whether their partnership can close the loop on "BD-production-sales" and complete the globalization puzzle remains to be seen—performance will determine if a "Davis Double Play" materializes.