IPO News | Zhengxiang Pharmaceutical once again submitted the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's core product, malselenosavir tablets, and was officially listed in October 2025
Zhitong Finance App learned that according to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange disclosure on August 26, Zhengxiang Pharmaceutical (Nanjing) Group Co., Ltd. (abbreviation: Zhengxiang Pharmaceutical) submitted a listing application to the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and CICC is the sole sponsor. The company submitted a listing application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on January 30, 2026.
Company profile
According to the prospectus, Zhengxiang Pharmaceutical is a biopharmaceutical company in the commercialization stage. It is committed to developing and commercializing innovative therapies to meet the limited medical needs of existing treatments in the fields of viral infectious diseases, oncology and inflammatory diseases. The company has one of its core products, malselenoxavir tablets, which target influenza virus polymerase acid protein (“PA”) endonuclease inhibitors. It was approved by the State Drug Administration (“NDA”) in July 2025, and then obtained NDA approval for the treatment of young patients in June 2026; the company is also developing the field of influenza prevention for people already exposed to the virus.
As of the last practical date, the company has developed six exclusive small-molecule drug asset pipelines, including the company's commercialized antiviral malselenosavir tablets, a post-clinical maseloxavir dry suspension form (in dry suspension form) for pediatric influenza patients, and a selective extracellular nucleotide pyrophosphatase/phosphodiesterase 1 (“ENPP1”) inhibitor ZX-8177 (phase 1 clinical phase) for treatment of hypophosphatase in August 2026 (after the last practical date) (“HPP” )'s IND application; and the DNA polymerase inhibitor ZX-12042B drug in the IND declaration phase for human papillomavirus (“HPV”) infection. The company also has two preclinical drug candidates for herpes simplex virus (“HSV”) infections and autoimmune diseases.
The company has completed a phase 3 clinical trial and submitted an NDA to extend the target age of macelonosavir tablets to adolescents. The application was accepted by the State Drug Administration in April 2025. The NDA was approved in June 2026. The company obtained IND approval from the Drug Evaluation Center in April 2025 to begin a phase 3 clinical trial using maselenosavir tablets to prevent influenza after exposure. The target population of this IND includes adults, adolescents, and children over 5 years of age. Since it is difficult for young pediatric patients to swallow solid oral formulations, and children need to administer the medicine flexibly according to body weight, the company is developing a maseloxavir dry suspension specifically for pediatric patients, and obtained an IND issued by the National Drug Administration in May 2026. The company plans to launch this phase 3 clinical trial in 2026.
Since the company's core product, malselenosavir tablets, was officially launched in October 2025, the product is still in the upward phase of the market in China. The company mainly cooperates with the national CSO, Jichuan Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. (“Jichuan Pharmaceutical”), and maintains a distribution network through its mature network to expand its market share. As of June 30, 2026, the company has reached cooperation with 30 distributors in China. The company believes this strategy will enable faster market entry. As of the last practical date, the oral dosage form of malselenosavir has not been approved in overseas markets. The company is exploring its commercial potential in overseas markets through collaboration with local partners, and has reached a partnership with the rapidly growing UAE pharmaceutical company Cigalah Medpharm Trading LLC (“Cigalah Medpharm”) to commercialize oral dosage forms of maselloxavir in the MENA region.
Financial data
Revenue:
In 2025 and 2026 for the six months ended June 30, the company's revenue was 5.314 million yuan and 2,514 million yuan, respectively.
Losses:
In 2024, 2025, 2025, and 2026 for the six months ended June 30, losses were approximately RMB 145 million, RMB 209 million, RMB 105 million, and RMB 907.93 million, respectively.
R&D costs:
In 2024, 2025, 2025, and 2026 for the six months ending June 30, R&D costs were approximately 100 million yuan, 112 million yuan, 643.25 million yuan, and 42.789 million yuan, respectively.
Industry Overview
The global influenza treatment and prevention drug market is closely related to seasonal influenza activity, and is therefore showing a trend of fluctuating year by year. The market size from 2020 to 2022 was relatively low, mainly reflecting the drastic reduction in the spread of influenza during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the widespread implementation of non-drug interventions such as wearing masks, social distancing, and travel restrictions. The increase in market size in 2023 reflects the resumption of seasonal influenza virus transmission after the relaxation of control measures related to epidemic prevention. The market size is expected to be high in 2025, reflecting updated epidemiological data for major markets. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that as of the beginning of January 2026, there were at least 11 million cases of influenza during the 2025-2026 influenza season; compared to about 5.3 million cases in the same period of the previous influenza season.
The market size for antiviral treatment and prevention drugs for influenza in China declined in 2021, mainly due to a decrease in influenza transmission during the COVID-19 pandemic, and then recovered with the relaxation of epidemic prevention measures. According to data from the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of confirmed influenza cases reported by sentinel hospitals reached 12.8 million in 2023, up 266% year on year, 17.2 million cases in 2025, up 266% year on year, and 17.2 million cases in 2025, up 100% year on year. The forecast from 2026 is based on the historical average incidence rate. The number of influenza-affected drugs is expected to increase by 100% from 2028. The forecast from 2026 is based on the historical average incidence rate. It is expected that from 2028, market growth will accelerate, driven by the approval of new indications for influenza drugs.
In China, most anti-influenza antiviral drugs have been included in the National Medicare Drug List (“NRDL”), such as oseltamivir and mabalosavir (“Sufuda”), to improve the affordability and accessibility of medication for patients through public health insurance coverage. Maseloxavir (“Zikesu”) and mapasisavir (“Erikang”) are newly marketed drugs recently and have not yet entered the NRDL price negotiation process. As of the last practical date, PA inhibitors have not been included in national drug collection (“VBP”) plans, while NAI has been included in national and provincial collection plans, thereby significantly reducing drug prices.
VBP has been used in oseltamivir products in China, and there are differences in the bid price for different dosage forms. In the seventh batch of national collections covering oseltamivir capsules in 2022, the lowest bid price was about RMB 0.99 per capsule (30 capsules per box), provided by Dongyang Pharmaceutical, while the winning bid price for other generic drug oseltamivir capsules was generally about RMB 1.5 to RMB 2.7 per capsule. In the eleventh batch of national collections covering oseltamivir phosphate granules in 2025, the lowest bid price was approximately RMB 17.88 (900 mg specification) per box; however, this product did not rank in the top 20 sales of oseltamivir products in China. Kewei, the number one product in terms of sales, did not participate in the collection and maintained its leading market position.
As of the last practical date, details of influenza PA inhibitors in the US and China during development are as follows:
Board Information
The Board consists of seven directors, including 2 executive directors, 2 non-executive directors and 3 independent non-executive directors.
Shareholding structure
Dr. Yang, Dr. Hao, and Zheng Xiang Jiwan are concerted activists. Enran Venture Capital refers to Enran Ruiguang, Zieyoukang, Jieyuan Growth, Enjie Venture Capital, Enran Chengfeng, and Nanjing Jiakang. As of the last practical date, the other investors included 26 existing minority shareholders, each holding less than 10% of the company's issued share capital.
Intermediary team
Sole sponsor: China International Finance Hong Kong Securities Limited
Company Legal Advisors: Hong Kong and US Law: Kaiyi Law Firm; Related Chinese Law: Jingtian Gongcheng Law Firm
Sole Sponsor Legal Adviser: Hong Kong Law: King & Wood Mallesons; Related Chinese Law: King & Wood Mallesons
Auditor and reporting accountant: KPMG
Industry Advisor: Insight Industry Consulting Co., Ltd.
Compliance Advisor: First Shanghai Finance Co., Ltd.