Chapter 302 - 217: The Pfizer Group’s Counterattack

Chapter 302: Chapter 217: The Pfizer Group’s Counterattack

Ever since the lecture at Jinggang University, Xie Bin had been brooding over how Jin Pharmaceutical Group had snatched away his prize, and how Wu Ting had refused to cooperate.

Xie Bin had been sincere in his offer and was determined to secure the partnership. He just hadn’t expected the young Wu Ting to be so impervious to persuasion, choosing a path of independent, self-sufficient R&D that he found incomprehensible.

Xie Bin’s senior executive assistant, Zhao Yan, was reporting the latest intelligence to Xie Bin and Xu Kunlin.

"President Xie, President Xu, I’ve been working with PwC to conduct a specific analysis of Jin Pharmaceutical Group’s various operations and current situation..."

"According to all current analytical data, Jin Pharmaceutical Group has entered a period of high-speed development and rapid expansion over the past two years..."

"Although this company currently keeps a low profile internationally, it’s in a class of its own among pharmaceutical companies within Jin Country. This is related to the philosophy of its founder and core team. Jin Pharmaceutical Group has always followed a path of autonomous, independent R&D..."

"Recently, Jin Pharmaceutical Group has invested a massive amount of capital into the R&D of innovator drugs... which is different from many domestic companies that specialize in developing generics..."

Listening to his assistant’s report, both Xie Bin and Xu Kunlin were somewhat surprised and impressed by the chairman of Jin Pharmaceutical Group, Jin Yihong!

The R&D investment and post-success returns for innovator drugs versus generic drugs were worlds apart.

Innovator drugs are also known as original new drugs, or patented drugs.

Every innovative drug requires a huge investment of time and capital, from R&D to market launch, and it cannot be replicated before its patent expires.

Once an innovator drug’s patent protection period ends, it can be replicated by other companies. These replicated products are known as generic drugs.

Generally speaking, for most domestic pharmaceutical companies, the term "innovator drug" simply refers to patented foreign drugs that have been validated through extensive clinical research—specifically, multi-center, randomized, double-blind, controlled trials supported by a wealth of evidence-based medicine.

As for developing their own original drugs domestically, most companies wouldn’t even consider it. After all, the investment is huge, the returns are small, and it’s simply not cost-effective.

A vast number of domestic pharmaceutical firms have chosen to directly replicate foreign innovator drugs once their patents expire. For generics, one only needs to copy the original; the investment is clear, the returns are predictable, and it’s an incredibly profitable business!

However, while there’s little difference in the structure and function of generic drugs, their purity and manufacturing processes can differ from the innovator drugs. Their quality, efficacy, and long-term effects are all questionable.

Innovator drugs used in clinical settings are backed by a great deal of evidence-based proof, whereas generic drugs can only borrow the evidence of the innovator drug, as they lack supporting evidence of their own.

In terms of safety and efficacy, it’s hard to say that generics are completely identical to innovator drugs. Generics lack sufficient evidence-based proof, while innovator drugs have it in abundance. So, generic manufacturers borrow the innovator’s evidence, run a simple bioequivalence study, and seemingly "prove" that their product is the same. But to equate the two based on this is purely opportunistic corner-cutting.

In the eyes of a pharmaceutical giant like Pfizer, these companies that only produce generics were nothing to be afraid of.

However, a local Jin Country enterprise like Jin Pharmaceutical Group—one that insisted on being independent and self-sufficient, pouring massive capital into innovator drugs—was worthy of serious attention.

And as it happened, Jin Pharmaceutical Group had just poached the research project from Wu Ting’s team, the very one Pfizer had its eye on.

This had effectively started a feud. With Xie Bin’s vengeful personality and his professional habit of never accepting a loss, he was naturally going to strike back hard.

Moreover, Jin Pharmaceutical Group’s corporate culture of focusing on innovator drugs also encroached upon Pfizer’s interests.

This was enough for Xie Bin to convince the board of directors at headquarters to approve sanctions and strikes against Jin Pharmaceutical Group.

"Continue."

Xie Bin steepled his fingers, listening quietly to his assistant’s analysis.

"According to the latest intelligence, it’s clear that Jin Pharmaceutical Group has recently been focusing heavily on developing new drugs in the field of oncology, especially antiviral therapies for liver cancer."

"Furthermore, Jin Pharmaceutical Group is pursuing an antiviral approach using TCM-based patent drugs... Their R&D center is heavily invested in two projects. One is the ’Yangzheng Xiujie Pill.’ The mechanism of this TCM-based drug is to bolster the body’s vital energy by reducing damage to white blood cells. It can intervene with tumors and offers related therapeutic benefits... Its greatest effects are protecting liver function, promoting hemoglobin production, and improving the patient’s quality of life..."

"This project has already entered Phase III clinical trials—the confirmatory stage for therapeutic efficacy. This is the crucial stage that provides the evidence needed to get the drug registration application approved. It’s the busiest and most task-intensive part of any clinical research project, and undoubtedly the most important step in the entire clinical trial process. It’s been ongoing for several years..."

"Based on its current progress, this drug is not far from an actual market launch. It’s a TCM-based drug with enormous potential and market value."

Hearing Zhao Yan’s report, both Xie Bin and Xu Kunlin were caught off guard. If it hadn’t been for this trip to Xiao City and the systematic investigation into Jin Pharmaceutical Group, they would have completely missed such critical intelligence.

Xie Bin patiently motioned for him to continue.

Zhao Yan continued, describing the second project: