SHANGHAI, July 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Everest Medicines (HKEX 1952.HK, “Everest” or the “Company”), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, clinical development, manufacturing, and commercialization of innovative therapeutics, today announced that it has entered into a placing and subscription agreement with the placing agents and its controlling shareholder, CBC Group (the “Sellers”), for a top-up placement of 22,561,000 shares to raise approximately HK$1,572.50 million, representing approximately 6.87% of the total number of Shares in issue as at the date of this announcement, and approximately 6.45% of the total number of Shares in issue.

Everest Medicines, together with its controlling shareholder CBC Group and the placing agents, entered into a placing and subscription agreement for the sale of 22,561,000 shares at a purchase price of HK$69.70 per share, representing:

• a discount of approximately 10.12% to the closing price of HK$77.55 per share on July 24, 2025.
• a discount of approximately 4.98% to the average closing price of HK$73.35 per Share as quoted on the Stock Exchange for the five consecutive trading days immediately prior to and including the Last Trading Date.
• a premium of 16.15% to the volume weighted average price of HK$60.01 per Share as quoted on the Stock Exchange for the thirty consecutive trading days immediately prior to the Last Trading Date and including the Last Trading Date.

The gross proceeds from the Placing and Subscription are expected to be approximately HK$1,572.50 million, and the net proceeds (after deducting all related expenses, including commission and levies) will be approximately HK$1,553.39 million.

Everest Medicines intends to use approximately 50% of the net proceeds (approximately HK$776.69 million) to support global research and development of pipeline products, approximately 40% (approximately HK$621.36 million) to commercialization efforts including the launch of new products, and 10% (approximately HK$155.34 million) to working capital and general corporate purposes.

“This placement was well-received by several leading international long-only funds and was significantly oversubscribed, reflecting strong capital market confidence in Everest’s commercial execution capabilities and innovative R&D strengths,” said Rogers Yongqing Luo, Chief Executive Officer of Everest Medicines. “It also underscores investors’ endorsement of our long-term strategic vision. We will use the proceeds to accelerate the development of innovative pipelines and our proprietary AI+mRNA platform, while advancing the commercialization of our existing portfolio. With a strengthened capital base, we are poised to drive both commercialization and innovation, delivering greater value to patients and shareholders.”

Everest has built an industry-leading, fully integrated, and localized AI+mRNA platform, enabling the development of multiple oncology and autoimmune disease programs, including EVM14, an off-the-shelf therapeutic mRNA cancer vaccine; EVM16, a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine; and an in vivo CAR-T program aimed at building a differentiated portfolio of precision immunotherapies.

• The first patient has been dosed with Everest’s internally developed personalized mRNA cancer vaccine (PCV) EVM16 at Peking University Cancer Hospital in the investigator-initiated clinical trial (IIT). Early results showed strong immunogenicity and specific T-cell responses even at a low starting dose in advanced cancer patients.
• The Investigational New Drug (IND) application for EVM14, a Tumor-Associated Antigen (TAA) vaccine, has been accepted by both the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) of China and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), making it Everest’s first mRNA cancer therapeutic vaccine to achieve dual IND submissions in both China and the United States. The first clinical batch of EVM14 was successfully released from Everest’s Jiashan manufacturing site on June 9, and is anticipated to be delivered to U.S. clinical centers by mid-August. This batch will support the clinical trials of EVM14 in both China and the United States (US).
• Everest’s in vivo CAR-T program is founded upon its proprietary targeted LNP (tLNP) delivery system and has shown promising results in both humanized mouse models and non-human primates. It offers key advantages including off-the-shelf availability, lymphodepletion-free administration, and dose controllability.

EVER001, a next-generation covalent reversible BTK inhibitor with global rights, is advancing through global multi-center clinical studies for glomerular diseases such as primary membranous nephropathy (pMN). Positive results from its Phase 1b/2a clinical trial demonstrated rapid onset, durable response, good tolerability, and oral convenience, offering strong potential to address unmet needs in renal disease treatment worldwide.

NEFECON^®, the first and only etiological treatment for IgA nephropathy (IgAN) full approved in China, the U.S., and Europe, continues to gain strong commercial traction in China following its inclusion in the National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL), benefiting over 20,000 patients to date. Everest is also accelerating the development of its proprietary diagnostic test for Gd-IgA1 to build an integrated disease management ecosystem encompassing diagnosis, treatment, and long-term care.

The New Drug Application (NDA) for Etrasimod (VELSIPITY^®) has been accepted in Mainland China, with approval anticipated between late 2025 and early 2026. The NDA has also been accepted in South Korea. VELSIPITY® has been commercially launched in Macao SAR, Singapore and Hong Kong SAR in 2024. As Everest’s third commercialized product, VELSIPITY^® has been officially approved by the Guangdong Provincial Medical Products Administration for adult patients with moderately to severely active UC. It is now available at medical institutions designated under the Connect Policy in the Greater Bay Area. In March 2025, Everest has launched the construction project at its Jiashan manufacturing site to support the local production for VELSIPITY^®.

Everest Medicines is accelerating the strategic advancement of its core pipeline and AI+mRNA technology platforms to further solidify its position as a leading innovative biopharmaceutical company in Asia.

About Everest Medicines

Everest Medicines is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing, manufacturing and commercializing transformative pharmaceutical products and vaccines that address critical unmet medical needs for patients in Asian markets. The management team of Everest Medicines has deep expertise and an extensive track record from both leading global pharmaceutical companies and local Chinese pharmaceutical companies in high-quality discovery, clinical development, regulatory affairs, CMC, business development and operations. Everest Medicines has built a portfolio of potentially global first-in-class or best-in-class molecules in the company’s core therapeutic areas of renal diseases, infectious diseases and autoimmune disorders. For more information, please visit its website at www.everestmedicines.com.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This news release may make statements that constitute forward-looking statements, including descriptions regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company or its officers with respect to the business operations and financial condition of the Company, which can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates,” “confident” and similar statements. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, or other factors, some of which are beyond the control of the Company and are unforeseeable. Therefore, the actual results may differ from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors and assumptions, such as future changes and developments in our business, competitive environment, political, economic, legal and social conditions. The Company or any of its affiliates, directors, officers, advisors or representatives has no obligation and does not undertake to revise forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or circumstances after the date of this news release, except as required by law.

BEIJING, July 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Life has never been happier for Xu Furong.

The 86-year-old resident of Nanliuzhuang village starts each morning with a bit of light housework. Then, hand in hand with her 90-year-old husband, she walks for about 10 minutes, crossing two streets to reach the “senior canteen,” which offers elderly residents convenient services at the “Yiyuanhong” Happy Home Livelihood Complex located just across from the village’s Party committee office.

During the heat of summer, the senior canteen offers a refreshing and comfortable haven. By around 10:30 am, more than a dozen senior residents have gathered, waiting for lunch while chatting casually as they cool off – relaxed and content in the lively atmosphere. In the kitchen, two cooks efficiently prepare fresh dishes. For just 1 yuan ($0.14), Xu Furong enjoys two hearty food courses – stir-fried bean sprouts with pork and scrambled eggs with onions – along with a bowl of millet porridge and two steamed buns.

Simple, tasty, and tailored to the local senior palate.

“Having meals here is just so convenient,” Xu said with a grateful smile. “Cooking for ourselves used to be troublesome, and our children aren’t always around. My husband and I would often just make do. But now we eat well and get to chat with old friends every day.”

Xu is just one of tens of thousands of seniors whose lives have improved significantly due to the establishment of senior canteens.

Yiyuan county, located in East China’s Shandong Province and home to Nanliuzhuang village, represents a typical aging rural area in China’s mountainous regions. With a total population of about 515,000, nearly 26 percent are aged 60 and above – well above the national average.

The county sits in the central mountainous region of Shandong, nestled in the Yimeng Mountains. Over 99 percent of its terrain is hilly, and local agriculture revolves around fruit cultivation – mainly apples, peaches, and cherries. The rugged geography and scattered aging population make traditional eldercare services difficult to implement.

To address these challenges, Yiyuan has pioneered a new model in recent years: “Farming for farmers, caring for farmers.” At the core is the “Yiyuanhong” project, which integrates facilities including senior canteens, public bathhouses, barbershops, health clinics, and convenience stores.

This model has become a grassroots blueprint for resolving eldercare issues in rural China. Since its launch in 2022, through public funding, resource integration, platform operations, and collective village support, Yiyuan has established 230 Happy Home Livelihood Complexes and 168 food assistance stations, achieving full eldercare coverage across all 446 villages in the county.

‘A dining hall in our village’

While Xu Furong and her old friends enjoy lunch at the long tables in the dining hall, meal delivery worker Xu Lihong dons her bright red vest and sets off on her electric scooter.

She weaves through the winding village lanes to deliver a hot meal to a senior couple with limited mobility. This special delivery service is part of the Nanliuzhuang complex’s offering for those who need extra care.

Previously a full-time farmer, 50-year-old Xu Lihong said the job not only supplements her family income, but also gives her a sense of fulfillment. “The seniors light up when they see me. I feel very accomplished,” she said.

In the nearby village of Fanziyu, a small, tidy mountain community of just over 290 residents, Fang Lijuan is the head chef, as well as the only employee at the local senior canteen.

As skillfully peeling potatoes, she explained, “Every day we serve 20 to 30 seniors. Cooking for them and seeing them chatting and laughing together makes me genuinely happy. This job feels meaningful.”

But Fang does not work alone. Behind her is a well-organized system that supports every aspect of operations.

Everything she needs, from vegetables to cooking oil to a broom, comes from a county-level supply center. She simply places orders via her phone. The steamed buns served daily are produced in a centralized kitchen in the county seat and delivered to each village dining hall before 7 am.

“The kitchen staff here only needs to do light prep work before meals. It really reduces our workload,” Fang added.

The centralized kitchen is operated by the Luzhong Food Company, a government-supported enterprise. Li Xuebin, the company’s deputy general manager, told the Global Times that the facility has created more than 300 jobs for local communities.

The high-quality, standardized food products are also sold to the public and supply meals to local schools and government departments, further amplifying the project’s social benefits.

Each of Yiyuan’s 230 Happy Home complexes features not only a senior canteen, but also regularly operating bathhouses, barbershops, health clinics, convenience stores, and activity squares, providing “one-stop” daily care for senior villagers.

In Longziyu village on the western edge of Yiyuan, village Party chief Dong Fangxin was rehearsing the village anthem with four residents in a community activity room.

He pointed out the window to the courtyard of the Happy Home complex, which houses various service facilities. In a room across the yard, a doctor from the township hospital was performing acupuncture treatments for villagers.

“We want to make sure seniors can enjoy the same convenience in their own villages that city dwellers do,” Dong told the Global Times.

A system with warmth

In Yiyuan, eldercare is not some distant policy ideal – it starts with a hot meal, a clean bath, and a warm bed.

According to county Party chief Zhang Tao, as the number of seniors living alone or without family continues to rise, eldercare in mountain villages faces the triple difficulty of food, daily care, and farming. Many senior residents eat one meal across two sittings or skip meals entirely. Those with limited mobility struggle with daily tasks, medical care, and shopping.

Meanwhile, older farmers in hilly fruit-growing areas often can’t tend to their orchards, limiting both their income and quality of life.

“How can one small village afford to keep a barber shop running?” Zhang asked. Before the project launched, authorities conducted eight rounds of surveys, visiting each household to identify the most urgent needs of seniors and tailor services accordingly.

These widespread yet specific issues gave birth to the Yiyuanhong model.

What’s more, the program follows a “one village, one blueprint; one village, one industry” approach. Each Happy Home Livelihood Complex is uniquely designed and integrated into a suitable industry.

For example, in the remote village of Yihenan, a novel “unused land-for-elderly-care” system was developed. The village reclaimed unused residential land and implemented a land adjustment scheme to raise initial funds to build the Happiness Home Livelihood Complex.

Now completed, the facility offers free long-term food and lodging to senior residents in need. The village collective also launched a kiwi fruit farming operation, using the income to sustain eldercare, a virtuous cycle.

Liu Wenmei, 89, and Zhang Xiangmei, 86, two sisters-in-law, are full-time residents of the Happiness Home Livelihood Complex. “We eat and live well here, and I get to chat with my old friends every day,” said Liu.

In Yihetou village, grapes have become the key to eldercare funding. Led by Party chief Song Shangye, the village has cultivated premium varieties like the popular Kyoho and Shine Muscat, introduced modern farming methods, and hired experts to oversee production.

In 2024, grape farming and sales brought in over 400,000 yuan for the village. Around 180,000 yuan was used for senior dining hall – providing solid support for the complex’s operations while achieving financial self-sufficiency.

In Longziyu village, where geographical and ecological advantages abound, a new model combining “cultural tourism + eldercare” has emerged. Old houses have been transformed into hotels, abandoned courtyards into art spaces, and the “camping + village kitchen” experience draws young urbanites on weekends.

Even French architect Paul Andreu lived here for inspiration, helping the mountain village become a new highlight in the region’s tourism industry, the Global Times reporter learned while visiting the village.

A down-to-earth solution

The Yiyuanhong is not a stand-alone care platform – it is a grassroots network linking services, governance, and industry to offer a practical, replicable rural eldercare solution.

It creates public service jobs through senior dining halls, funds eldercare through collective economic revenue, and extends social governance through systematic platforms. In doing so, it truly embeds care into rural daily life.

Party Chief Zhang believes the success of Yiyuan’s model lies in its people-centered approach. “It’s not just about building the facilities or handing out money. The mechanism must be activated. It has to take root and thrive.”

“Village Party chiefs are essentially the CEOs of rural revitalization,” he said. “We must train them to be dedicated, capable, and responsible leaders.”
Yiyuan is also integrating future-oriented technologies into its eldercare system.

In Dongli township, the county has established a smart home-based eldercare platform, now covering 18 villages and 221 key senior households.

Each home is equipped with smart terminals connected to a county-level command center, enabling real-time monitoring and emergency response.

Through the system, seniors can consult with professionals remotely. If an emergency arises, care providers are dispatched immediately.

“Our next step is to refine this model into a set of transferable practices,” Zhang said, “so it can serve mountainous aging regions like Southwest China’s Guizhou and Yunnan provinces, and further support rural revitalization efforts in rural vitalization and beyond.”

Through continuous efforts, the final 98.99 million impoverished rural residents in China were all lifted out of poverty, and all 832 impoverished counties and 128,000 villages were removed from the poverty list by the end of 2020, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

In Yiyuan, Xu Furong and her husband, after lunch, help each other on the 15-minute-long uphill walk back home. Xu Lihong heads out to deliver meals to the next household. And Fang Lijuan is already planning to make dumplings for the village seniors tomorrow.

When happiness is no longer a distant “project goal” but a daily experience the people can see and feel, that is the most vivid expression of a people-centered approach to human rights.

NANJING, China, July 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On 25 July, 2025 (China Time), Nanjing Leads Biolabs Co., Ltd. (“Leads Biolabs” or the “Company”) listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (HKEX) under the stock code “09887”.

The clinical-stage biotech company priced its IPO at HKD 35 per share, offering 36.86 million shares (excluding green shoe option). The deal included a Hong Kong public tranche of 16.03 million shares (43% of the total) and an international placement of 20.84 million shares (57%). Morgan Stanley and CITIC Securities acted as joint sponsors of the transaction.

Gross proceeds totaled approximately USD 189 million (including green shoe option). According to Leads Biolabs, the proceeds will be allocated as follows:

• ~65% for ongoing and planned clinical trials and regulatory affairs;
• ~15% for advancing preclinical assets, expanding existing pipelines, and optimizing technology platforms
• ~10% for upgrading manufacturing capacity and commercialization preparedness post-approval;
• ~10% for working capital and general corporate purposes.

Dr. Xiaoqiang Kang, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Leads Biolabs, commented:

“Our HKEX debut represents a major leap from laboratory innovation to global capital markets, accelerating our innovation-driven international expansion. For more than a decade, we’ve pursued one goal: becoming a global leader in immuno-oncology therapeutics. At this inflection point, we reaffirm our founding commitment to eradicating disease while maintaining the entrepreneurial vigor that defines us. Through strengthened global execution and accelerated translation of breakthrough therapies from bench to bedside, we will deliver paradigm-shifting treatments to patients across the globe.“

Founded in 2012, Leads Biolabs is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery, development, and commercialization of innovative therapies to address unmet medical needs in oncology, autoimmune, and other severe diseases both in China and globally. The Company has built a differentiated pipeline of 14 innovative drug candidates, including six clinical-stage drug candidates, of which four lead products are among the top-tier clinically advanced candidates globally.

Leads Biolabs operates an integrated business model encompassing in-house discovery, development and commercialization of innovative tumor immunotherapies. The Company has strategically developed assets in three areas: Immuno-oncology 2.0 (IO 2.0), T-cell engagers (TCEs), and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). Its oncology pipeline includes 12 investigational products, including 3 monoclonal antibodies, 5 bispecific antibodies, 3 ADCs and 1 bispecific fusion protein. The Company is also progressing two promising candidates for autoimmune diseases—a bispecific fusion protein and a trispecific antibody. 

Leads Biolabs’ R&D is powered by multiple proprietary technology platforms that feature integrated, AI-powered and diversified antibody engineering capabilities, including LeadsBody™ (a CD3 T-cell engager platform), X-body™ (a 4-1BB engager platform) and its linker-payload platform for ADC development. These platforms have demonstrated clinical proof-of-concept, particularly with bispecific antibody combinations.

The LeadsBody™ platform delivers strong technological capabilities for developing CD3-targeted bispecific antibodies. Its innovative molecular design enables precise affinity modulation between TCEs and both CD3 and tumor-associated antigens (TAAs). With spatially optimized steric hindrance architecture, the platform enables conditional T-cell activation exclusively within the tumor microenvironment (TME), significantly lowering the risk of cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and systemic toxicity. This molecular engineering approach is designed to optimize the therapeutic index through customized spatial configurations that reduce treatment interruptions due to toxicity. By minimizing adverse systemic effects, the platform enables extended treatment durations and, ultimately, aims to improve patient quality of life (QoL).

Building on this platform, Leads Biolabs has established a position of leadership in the promising field of solid tumor immunotherapies. The company has developed six differentiated TCE therapeutic candidates, forming a portfolio spanning three major therapeutic areas: hematologic malignancies, solid tumors, and autoimmune diseases.

Hematologic Malignancies:

• LBL-034: A GPRC5D/CD3 bispecific antibody for the treatment of multiple myeloma (MM)
• LBL-043: A LILRB4/CD3 bispecific antibody targeting acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and multiple myeloma (MM)

Solid Tumors:

• LBL-033: A MUC16/CD3 bispecific antibody targeting solid tumors overexpressing MUC16, with a focus on gynecologic cancers including ovarian cancer, cervical cancer, and endometrial carcinoma
• LBL-054: A CDH17/CD3 T-cell engager under development for colorectal cancer (CRC), gastric cancer, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), and neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs)
• LBL-058: A first-in-class TCE-ADC (antibody-drug conjugate) targeting DLL3, demonstrating encouraging efficacy in DLL3-positive small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and NENs

Autoimmune Diseases:

• LBL-051: A first-in- class CD19/BCMA/CD3 trispecific antibody designed to block autoantibody production by B cells and plasma cells while regulating B-cell hyperactivation, differentiation, and plasmacytic transformation. The candidate’s unique mechanism of action enables broad-based B-cell modulation, potentially delivering superior clinical outcomes. The program is being advanced through a strategic collaboration with NewCo, a portfolio company of leading biotech investor Aditum Bio.

The company’s X-body™ platform utilizes advanced antibody engineering to develop 2:2 bispecific antibody structures. Its lead candidate, LBL-024 (PD-L1/4-1BB), represents a key advance in 4-1BB agonist therapies, becoming the first agent in this class to enter global registrational trials. The platform’s 2:2 configuration is designed to restrict 4-1BB activation to the tumor microenvironment (TME), addressing systemic toxicity issues, particularly hepatotoxicity, that have undermined earlier efforts in this category. This platform-driven approach enables precise control of immune activation within the TME, minimizing off-target adverse effects while reactivating exhausted T cells and driving clonal expansion. The mechanism has shown particular promise in tumors resistant to PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors, as well as in so-called immunologically “cold” tumors. The successful execution of this strategy with LBL-024 underscores its potential as a best-in-class immunotherapy candidate.

At the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting, Leads Biolabs presented data from a multicenter Phase Ib/II trial evaluating LBL-024 in combination with etoposide and platinum-based chemotherapy in first-line advanced extra-pulmonary neuroendocrine carcinoma (EP-NEC). The study reported a 75.0% objective response rate (ORR) and a 92.3% disease control rate (DCR) among the efficacy-evaluable population (n=52). In the 15 mg/kg cohort, ORR reached 83.3%, with a DCR of 100%. Overall, 57.7% of patients (30/52) achieved tumor reduction exceeding 50%. These results substantially outperformed historical benchmarks for chemotherapy alone, which typically show ORR in the 30–55% range. While progression-free survival (PFS) data were not yet mature at the April 15, 2025 cutoff (median follow-up: 8.2 months), all dose cohorts showed favorable trends compared with historical controls.

EP-NEC is a rare and aggressive cancer with poor advanced-stage outcomes and no approved second-line or later therapies. Recognizing this unmet medical need, China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) granted approval on April 30, 2024 for a pivotal single-arm registrational trial of LBL-024 in EP-NEC, potentially establishing it as the first approved therapy for this indication.

As the world’s first 4-1BB-targeted molecule to have reached registrational stage, LBL-024 could establish 4-1BB as the fourth approved immuno-oncology target following PD-1/L1, CTLA-4 and LAG-3. The candidate has earned Breakthrough Therapy Designation from China’s NMPA for relapsed/refractory EP-NEC and Orphan Drug Designation from U.S. FDA for neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs).

LBL-024 has also secured regulatory approvals to investigate indications including small cell lung cancer (SCLC), biliary tract cancer (BTC), ovarian cancer (OC), non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and gastric cancer (GC). Early clinical data have shown promising antitumor activity in SCLC, BTC and OC, supporting its potential as a broad-spectrum oncology therapeutic.

Leads Biolabs has enhanced end-to-end capabilities across the entire drug development lifecycle—from early-stage target screening and discovery to preclinical research, clinical development, CMC (Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls), and pilot manufacturing. Demonstrating exceptional efficiency, the Company has achieved IND submission within just three years of target selection, significantly outpacing the industry average of 5 to 6 years (based on Frost & Sullivan data). In addition to its proprietary R&D initiatives, Leads Biolabs is exploring strategic collaborations to accelerate clinical development and commercialization of promising drug candidates. The Company is well-positioned to capitalize on market opportunities through out-licensing agreements, co-marketing partnerships, and other strategic alliances. As its clinical-stage assets progress toward commercialization, Leads Biolabs may expand its infrastructure to include commercial-scale manufacturing facilities while bolstering commercialization capabilities—both through collaborative ventures and the development of an in-house sales force.