HKEX filings show that clinical-stage biopharma company Elpiscience Biopharma submitted its third IPO application to the HKEX main board on November 27, 2025. The eight-year-old innovative drug developer, with cumulative losses exceeding RMB 2 billion, is making another dash for capital markets amid a dire cash position that can only sustain three months of R&D. Despite backing from prominent investors like Lilly Asia Ventures, Hillhouse Capital, and Tencent, mounting risks are becoming impossible to ignore.
**Funding Crisis: RMB 33 Million Cash vs RMB 2.7 Billion Debt, Race Against Time** Elpiscience faces severe liquidity pressure. By end-2024, its cash and equivalents plummeted 88% YoY to just RMB 32.82 million—far insufficient to cover ongoing operations even at current R&D levels. Its 2024 R&D costs reached RMB 117 million, with persistent operating cash outflows.
More alarming is its debt structure. Convertible redeemable preferred shares classified as liabilities totaled RMB 2.738 billion net debt by end-2024. These shares carry mandatory redemption clauses—if IPO isn’t completed by specified dates, the company must repay at issuance price plus 8% annual simple interest, creating potential massive cash obligations.
To conserve cash, Elpiscience has taken drastic measures including facility divestments, workforce reductions, and R&D project cuts, yet the situation remains critical. The IPO proceeds are explicitly earmarked for "R&D advancement, technology platform optimization, and working capital," underscoring its urgent need for a lifeline.
**Pipeline Weaknesses: Lackluster Core Product Data, Doubts Over In-House R&D** As a pre-revenue biopharma, its pipeline is key to valuation—but this foundation faces multiple challenges.
Lead asset ES102, a hexavalent OX40 agonist antibody licensed from Inhibrx, is one of only two OX40 candidates globally in Phase II+ trials. However, its clinical data shows limited competitiveness: among 27 evaluable patients in combo therapy, objective response rate was just 11.1% and disease control rate 40.7%, underperforming both PD-1 inhibitors’ monotherapy benchmarks and failing to demonstrate differentiation.
Notably, Elpiscience’s most advanced assets are all in-licensed, with unproven internal R&D capabilities. While promoting its differentiated BiME platform and a high-value Astellas collaboration, the platform hasn’t yielded any proprietary clinical-stage assets. Partnership revenue provides only short-term financial relief without sustainable cash flow.
**Market & Valuation Challenges: Bubble-Like Valuation, Tougher IPO Climate** Elpiscience’s valuation trajectory reflects shifting biotech investment logic. Post four funding rounds since 2017, its valuation skyrocketed 30x from USD 20 million to USD 600 million by 2021—now significantly above industry norms.
At 37x 2024 R&D costs (versus Wind’s median 15.65x for 50 unprofitable HKEX 18A biotechs), its premium looks unsustainable amid sector-wide valuation compression. Meanwhile, HKEX’s 2023 rule revisions raised 18A requirements—demanding late-stage clinical assets with "sufficient commercial potential"—heightening hurdles for companies like Elpiscience with early-stage, mediocre data.
**Conclusion** From failed U.S. listing attempts to this third HKEX bid, Elpiscience’s journey mirrors many Chinese biotechs’ struggles to balance funding, R&D, and market confidence. With cash running out, heavy debt, and unproven pipelines, this IPO isn’t just about growth—it’s existential. The market watches whether this once high-profile bet can secure final investor trust with credible data and sustainable narratives.
*This article incorporates AI-generated content*
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