Hengrui Pharma has agreed with US-based Braveheart Bio, which specialises in cardiovascular diseases, granting it an exclusive licence for its small-molecule cardiac myosin inhibitor, HRS-1893.
Braveheart Bio has secured rights for the development, production and sale of the therapy globally except in Mainland China, the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR), the Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan.
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The collaboration involves an initial payment of $65m from Braveheart to Hengrui, split equally between cash and equity in Braveheart.
A subsequent near-term payment of up to $10m is anticipated upon technology transfer, bringing the total to $75m.
Hengrui could obtain up to $1.013bn in development and commercial milestones, along with royalties on net sales.
The therapy is currently in a Phase III study in China for treating obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
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By GlobalDataHengrui Pharma chief strategy officer and executive vice-president Frank Jiang stated: “This agreement demonstrates the global competitiveness of our diversified, high-value research and development pipeline, and will accelerate the development of our innovative therapies for cardiovascular diseases, bringing more clinically valuable treatment options to patients around the world.”
The therapy has been designed to selectively block myosin adenosine triphosphatase activity, inhibiting excessive myocardial contraction, diminishing left ventricular hypertrophy and enhancing diastolic compliance.
Recent Phase I data of HRS-1893 was unveiled at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2025, which was held in Madrid, Spain, from 29 August to 1 September.
In May 2024, Hengrui Pharma finalised a significant transaction using the NewCo model, out-licensing its glucagon-like peptide-1 class drug portfolio to Kailera Therapeutics. This deal, potentially worth up to $6bn, also saw Hengrui acquiring a 19.9% stake in the newly formed US-based company.
In July 2025, Hengrui signed a development agreement with GSK for up to 12 medicines across therapeutic areas including immunology, respiratory, inflammation and oncology.
