Innovent Biologics, Inc. (Innovent) (HKEX: 01801), a world-class biopharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and commercializes high-quality medicines for the treatment of cancer, metabolic, autoimmune and other major diseases, announced the signing of a non-exclusive, target-specific license agreement  with Synaffix B.V., a biotechnology company focused on commercializing its clinical-stage platform technology that enables antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) with best-in-class therapeutic index.

Under the terms of the agreement, Synaffix will provide all the necessary proprietary ADC technologies including GlycoConnect™ , HydraSpace™ and one of its toxSYN™ linker-payloads, to enable Innovent to rapidly progress one of its antibodies as a best-in-class ADC candidate. The deal is the culmination of a successful initial proof-of-concept research period between the companies.

Upon signature, Innovent is granted the rights to deploy the above ADC technologies for one therapeutic molecule. Innovent will be responsible for the research, development, manufacturing and commercialization of the ADC product. Synaffix will closely support Innovent's research activities and will be responsible for the manufacturing of components that are specifically related to its proprietary technologies.

Under the terms of the agreement, Synaffix is eligible to receive upfront payment, potential milestone payments related to certain development and sales performance achievements as well as royalties based on potential future commercial sales of the ADC product.

Dr. Yongjun Liu, President of Innovent said, "We are excited to collaborate with Synaffix as Innovent is expanding its pipeline into the ADC space. Our collaboration with Synaffix adds a promising new ADC candidate to our preclinical pipeline through leveraging Synaffix's validated, differentiated and innovative ADC technology platform and Innovent's strong antibody capabilities. Based on Synaffix's seamless partnering model, we could rapidly combine Synaffix's ADC technologies with Innovent's antibody, generate compelling research data and keep moving the project ahead swiftly."

Peter van de Sande, CEO of Synaffix said, "This collaboration is yet another example that illustrates the potential of the Synaffix platform to increase the competitive position of our partners within the ADC space. Innovent is an ideal partner for Synaffix due to its strategic focus on innovative medicines and strong R&D capability for high quality biologic drugs. We look forward to working closely together on this exciting development program."