Zhu Yi works seven days a week at 62. Since Biokin Pharmaceutical set up a Seattle subsidiary in 2014 to expand into drug R&D, this has been his routine.
He starts mornings at 8 a.m. with back-to-back team briefings, the time he says his mind is sharpest. After 4 p.m., when he allows himself to “get a little fuzzy,” he shifts to more flexible tasks such as meeting friends or handling external matters.
Every night from 9 p.m. to midnight, he reviews clinical team reports. During the interview, he opened Lark to show spreadsheets he designed himself. Years of repetition, he said, have trained his instincts:
“If something in the new data looks off, I spot it at a glance.”
As Biokin’s market capitalization passed RMB 100 billion (USD 14 billion), Zhu was dubbed the “richest man on the STAR Market.” Yet he sometimes regrets not working this hard earlier. “Biokin could have gone even further by now,” he said.
Born in the 1960s in a factory town in Neijiang, Sichuan, Zhu excelled as a student, inspired by stories of Albert Einstein and China’s push for scientific achievement. He dreamed of becoming a scientist but, lacking resources, shifted course after graduating with a biophysics degree from Fudan University. He first worked as a university lecturer, then moved into real estate, where he made his first fortune.
His plan was simple: earn money in business, then return to science.
In 1996, he founded Baili Pharmaceutical, Biokin’s predecessor, focusing on generics. Its ribavirin granule brand became a domestic bestseller. Those profits later funded Biokin’s move into innovative drugs.
China’s biotech sector typically favors a different narrative: returnee scientists from multinational pharma, novel drug targets, and venture funding. But in years when the market dismissed him, Zhu invested his own capital.
Biokin remained little known until late 2023, when a major business development (BD) deal led it to license its oncology drug BL-B01D1 to Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) for USD 800 million upfront and a total deal value of USD 8.4 billion. Importantly, Biokin retained US co-development and commercialization rights.
In the past two years, Chinese innovative drugs have gone abroad at record pace, with out-licensing deals in just the first half of this year exceeding USD 60 billion. Although BL-B01D1’s upfront payment has since been surpassed, its total value remains the largest for a single-asset licensing deal.
Zhu’s philosophy of making money first, then turning to science, has finally gained recognition.
Listed for just over two years, Biokin is now the third A-share biotech firm to break the RMB 100 billion market cap mark. In July, it raised RMB 4 billion (USD 560 million) through a private placement.
Being labeled one of the wealthiest makes Zhu uneasy. At a recent forum, he warned that being called “the richest” does not always bring luck. What matters most, he said, is whether Biokin continues to make steady progress in R&D.
His new goal is to turn Biokin into a China-founded multinational company (MNC). Many Chinese biotech firms once made the same claim, but after years of industry downturn and consolidation, few still do. Zhu is different. He remains confident, determined, and combative. He repeated during our conversation that Biokin will become an MNC within five years.
At the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Future Health Industry Conference, organized by Tonacea, Zhu spoke with the media about Biokin’s future.
The following transcript has been edited and consolidated for brevity and clarity.
36Kr: From the massive BD deal to your current ambition, you’ve left the impression that once you’ve set a standard, you won’t budge.
Zhu Yi (ZY): Basically, yes.
36Kr: Most companies compromise within what they can accept. How do you handle that pressure?
ZY: Take the BL-B01D1 deal as an example. For us, BD wasn’t a KPI for the BD team. It was part of company-wide planning. We had to do an international-scale deal with the right structure. That was our BD strategy.
Before it was signed, I said that if the terms were USD 500 million upfront and USD 5 billion total, I wouldn’t do it. Too low. The structure had to include co-development and profit-sharing. People thought I was bluffing.
At that stage, multinational companies still had a mindset of “lowballing” Chinese biotech firms. They didn’t accept our terms. For us, two questions mattered. First, did the product and data justify it? I believed they did. We had strong preclinical data and clinical samples.
At the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting in June 2023, we presented in a 6,000-seat hall, where the chair described our work as “first in class” and a “new concept bispecific ADC (antibody-drug conjugate).”
Second, once you’re confident in the product, do you have the resolve to walk away if the deal isn’t right? We were prepared to go it alone globally. No money? If the product is good, the money will come.
36Kr: That’s still a big gamble.
ZY: No doubt. Doing innovative drugs is like playing poker. You need the guts to go all in.
36Kr: But many biotech firms do BD mainly to ease cash flow pressures. Isn’t that different?
ZY: Our cash flow was also extremely tight then. Midway through 2023, Biokin had only RMB 400 million (USD 56 million) in cash. Analysts thought we’d run out by the end of 2023 or early 2024. That was harsher than what many companies face now.
36Kr: How did you respond?
ZY: Since we were already listed, our only fundraising option was a secondary placement. But that channel was basically closed. When we spoke to institutional investors, they asked the same question. I told them that as long as the product is good, I’ll find the money.
36Kr: Why were you so sure?
ZY: Two reasons. First, our system is highly efficient. We burn cash more slowly than most biotech companies. Our generics and Chinese patent medicines still contributed RMB 50–100 million (USD 7–14 million) annually.
For example, outsiders assumed a Chinese patient would cost RMB 500,000 in a clinical trial. We managed with just over RMB 200,000. So while the market thought we’d run out by mid-2024, I knew we could last until 2026.
Second, our track record with banks was flawless in nearly 30 years. There has never been a late payment or a default. During August and September 2023, while the BD talks were ongoing and the market expected us to land maybe USD 200 million upfront and USD 2 billion total, banks were already offering us RMB 1 billion (USD 140 million) in unsecured loans. Pure credit. No collateral.
36Kr: Biokin’s moves are tightly linked. Your tough stance in BD was supported by efficient, low-cost operations. How did you manage that?
ZY: Two key factors. First, China has abundant, relatively low-cost clinical resources. Second, we’ve always focused on efficiency. We don’t inflate headcount. We stay lean.
36Kr: Can you give an example?
ZY: Many inefficiencies come from not hiring hands-on people. That leads to layers of bureaucracy without real problem-solving. Biokin requires everyone to be hands-on. Fewer layers mean quicker decisions.
For instance, we don’t rely on contract research organizations (CROs). In just three years, we built a clinical team of nearly 700 people and launched more than 70 trials. Each employee handles three to five projects.
And we innovate in operations, not just products. Unlike the typical CRO model where project managers and execution staff are separate, we combine the roles. One person both leads and executes.
36Kr: How do you find such people?
ZY: We want quick thinkers who execute decisively. I only have 24 hours, so I focus on key details, not every detail. If someone lacks experience, I train them once and expect them to deliver. It’s results-driven.
The hardest part was that such people are rare. I personally spent a lot of time interviewing. We train rigorously, learn by doing, and eliminate weak fits. Under pressure, people can unlock their potential. Many actually prefer carrying both responsibilities as it frees them from rigid systems that held them back before.
36Kr: That sounds like a high-pressure culture.
ZY: Yes, our targets are tough, and I’m impatient.
36Kr: Then why would talent join you?
ZY: We encourage competition. But instead of firing a set percentage, we differentiate pay. Underperformers earn little and stagnate. High performers earn salaries others envy.
36Kr: Some might call you an overbearing boss.
ZY: If they call me paternalistic, I’ll take it as a compliment. Others might complain I micromanage. I don’t mind. The result is that our people grow fast, our efficiency is high, and we produce strong outcomes at low cost.
When we struck the deal with BMS in 2023, we already had data from 800 patients, which was a large cohort, and all were in China. That showed both product strength and quality, even though we hadn’t been in trials for long.
36Kr: Do peers ask you about efficiency?
ZY: Many do. But few stick with it. It requires both knowing how and executing consistently.
36Kr: Is leadership the missing piece?
ZY: Mature pharma management requires three different skill sets: inspiring scientists, navigating business interests, and running clinical trials.
With scientists, you spark passion for discovery. In business, you read people and power dynamics. For trials, you map out every process, greet researchers politely, but also say “no” firmly when needed.
I often say that to innovate, you must aim for excellence but stay grounded. You need passion and persistence. And, harsh as it sounds, you need brilliance and foresight. If you can’t stay on the front line and stick with it, that’s a problem.
36Kr: You stress frontline understanding and control.
ZY: Yes. Back when we did generics, we fought tooth and nail in crowded markets and still ranked first or second. That was our edge.
For example, a product must penetrate three layers: hospitals, pharmacy chains, and rural clinics. In Sichuan, I knew which towns had which street layouts, how many clinics, how many pharmacies, and how to distribute to avoid price wars.
I carried a mental map of the entire country. I expect my teams to know their territories just as well—from population to competition and even street grids—by heart. No notes, no laptops. Report it directly when asked.
With that kind of toughness, making stronger innovative drugs is like fighting an easier battle.
36Kr: BL-B01D1 has boosted Biokin’s reputation for innovation. How is co-development progressing?
ZY: It’s the only EGFR-HER3 bispecific ADC in Phase 3 trials globally. We’re running more than 40 trials across tumor types in China and the US, including nine at Phase 3 in non-small cell lung cancer, small cell lung cancer, and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. All Phase 3 enrollment will finish this year. Our current cash can fund them all. As long as the data is good, we’ll advance in parallel.
36Kr: What’s the commercialization plan in China?
ZY: We aim to file our first marketing application for BL-B01D1 this year, for nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Our commercial team already has more than 200 staff and will expand to 500–800 by next year’s launch. In the first year of commercialization, we may scale up to 2,000–3,000 people.
Our generics team, once more than 10,000 strong, has been trimmed to 200–300. We keep only the core and run it as a platform. For years, generics funded our innovation, but now they’re skeletal.
In the future, once innovative drug revenue matches or exceeds the generics business, we’ll spin off or sell the generics arm to a capable player. If it can’t thrive, we’ll cut it. Employees know this.
36Kr: That sounds brutal.
ZY: That’s reality. I tell staff that if Biokin goes bankrupt, I’ll be the one to jump from the tenth floor. Until then, if performance is lacking, it won’t be me who leaves. It’ll be you.
36Kr: Can Biokin sustain innovation beyond BL-B01D1?
ZY: Yes. As of the first quarter this year, 14 innovative drugs are in clinical stages. For example, BL-M07D1, a HER2 ADC for breast cancer, began Phase 3 enrollment in May.
We’ve built a closed-loop R&D chain. Our data iterates continuously. We run our own trials, not CROs, with high efficiency. Our factories supply globally. We cover basic research, clinical development, manufacturing, and commercialization. Outsiders didn’t realize this before.
36Kr: What innovation areas are you now focused on?
ZY: Oncology. ADCs will remain central as they are among the most powerful anti-tumor formats. Beyond that, two principles: large-scale, precise tumor killing, and tracking and eliminating metastasized cells. We’re pursuing both.
36Kr: How has China’s biotech sector changed?
ZY: Biotech isn’t like physics or math where talent dominates. It demands massive accumulated knowledge and experience. That’s why seasoned professionals have long dominated.
But the paradigm is shifting. Young founders now build biotech startups with energy, using databases and artificial intelligence to replace manual, experience-driven systems.
36Kr: Is Biokin adapting too?
ZY: Absolutely. My physics background makes me value cutting-edge tools and quantitative methods. They uncover biology’s underlying logic efficiently.
In China, our team does “one to 100.” Since 2011, we’ve mostly hired fresh graduates from schools like Peking University, Tsinghua University, the University of Science and Technology of China, and Sichuan University. We train them year by year.
In the US, our subsidiary does “zero to one,” at the frontier. We recruit young scientists from top labs, not industry veterans. I’m usually the oldest there.
36Kr: Have they met your expectations?
ZY: Yes. Today, both our biology and chemistry leads came straight from school and grew with us. They share my work ethic. We light up when talking about innovation.
We’re cautious about following trends quickly. It has value in China’s ecosystem, but at Biokin, no one dares suggest “copying what others did.” If someone does, we mock them. Our ethos is: do something different.
36Kr: Why insist on being different?
ZY: As a student, I was always top of the class. Becoming a scientist was my dream. Innovation is in my bones. I don’t just think; I act. And when I do, I want to make it count.
36Kr: How close is Biokin to achieving that “making it count” goal?
ZY: We’re climbing. In five years, we’ll build the framework of an MNC. In ten years, we’ll reach full scale. At my current intensity, I can handle another decade. Beyond that, if I still have the energy, I’ll keep going.
36Kr: What does an MNC framework mean?
ZY: It comprises four pillars: global-leading early R&D in at least one field, global clinical development, a global supply chain resilient to geopolitics, and global commercialization.
Of these, commercialization abroad is our gap. Domestically, we’ve proven commercial strength since our days in generics. But in the US, we’ve yet to show it.
36Kr: What’s the plan to build global commercialization?
ZY: We’ve already started. A core team of three to five is working on strategy. By 2028, when BL-B01D1 is expected to launch in the US, we’ll have a full overseas clinical and commercial team of about 2,000.
36Kr: What are you missing now?
ZY: Five years, and money.
Overseas trials cost far more. In China, one patient may cost RMB 300,000 (USD 42,000). In the US, it’s USD 300,000. That funding gap means we must raise capital.
36Kr: What’s the fundraising outlook?
ZY: We recently closed a RMB 4 billion private placement on the A-share market. Over the next two years, we’ll likely receive USD 500 million in near-term milestone payments from BMS.
We paused our Hong Kong IPO plan. Yes, money can be raised in Hong Kong, but at what valuation? We insist our stock is worth what it’s worth. We’ve always been extremely responsible to shareholders and will not dilute their value.
KrASIA Connection features translated and adapted content that was originally published by 36Kr. This article was written by Hu Xiangyun for 36Kr.