Everest Medicines (HKEX 1952.HK, "Everest") announced today that it has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Suzhou Sinovent Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. ("Sinovent") and SinoMab BioScience Limited (stock code: 3681.HK "SinoMab") to develop, produce and commercialize XNW1011 (referred as "SN1011" by SinoMab), a covalent reversible Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor, globally for the treatment of renal diseases.  

Under the terms of the agreement, Everest will pay Sinovent and SinoMab USD $12 million in initial upfront payments and up to $549 million as future development, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments, as well as high single-digit to low double-digit royalties on global net sales.  The agreement will also include full technology transfer of the current manufacturing process to Everest to support future development and commercialization.

XNW1011 (or "SN1011") is a next-generation covalent reversible BTK inhibitor that exhibits high selectivity, excellent pharmacokinetics property, robust target engagement and a safety profile that supports continued development based in part on results from a completed phase 1 study with healthy subjects conducted by SinoMab in China.

"Chronic kidney disease is a leading public health problem worldwide and primary glomerular disease is a common cause of renal damage. B cell abnormalities play a major role in the etiology of a number of primary glomerular diseases which have a high prevalence in Asia." said Kerry Blanchard, MD, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Everest Medicines. "We are impressed by the data generated from XNW1011 (or "SN1011") to date and are committed to moving this compound quickly into phase 2 studies to explore a number of renal diseases, of which represent a few global first-in-disease opportunities for Everest. This important partnership with Sinovent and SinoMab not only solidifies Everest's leadership in developing novel therapies to combat renal disease, but also underscores our transition to developing novel therapies for the global market by leveraging the vast patient population in Greater China and Asia."