Catalyst Biosciences to acquire a 65% stake in Beijing Continent from GNI Group.

Catalyst Biosciences, a biopharmaceutical company with expertise in protease engineering, agreed to acquire a 65% stake in Beijing Continent, a commercial-stage pharmaceutical company, from GNI Group, a global multinational company that engages in the research, development, and manufacturing of pharmaceutical drugs and traditional Chinese medicines. Financial terms were not disclosed. “Continent has funded its drug discovery programs in China using its own profits. We are very excited with the positive results from the F351 Phase 2 clinical study of HBV-associated liver fibrosis in China and are keenly interested in expanding the clinical development of F351 for NASH fibrosis in the US. This transaction enables GNI Group to accelerate the clinical development of F351,” Ying Luo, GNI Group CEO.