Lilly strikes USD 3.05b multi-program licensing collaboration with China's Haisco Pharma

Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) annouced [a multi-program licensing and research collaboration](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/haisco-announces-licensing-and-research-collaboration-agreement-with-lilly-to-develop-innovative-medicines-across-multiple-therapeutic-areas-302786957.html) with Haisco Pharmaceutical Group (SZSE: 002653) worth up to USD 3.05 billion across as many as five early-stage programs - the latest in a dealmaking run for Lilly that has accelerated sharply in 2026. Under the deal terms, Haisco will identify and nominate target programs from its internal discovery engine, while Lilly assumes responsibility from IND-enabling studies through commercialization. The press release did not provide any specifics on molecules, targets, or potential indications. Haisco is eligible to receive up to USD 87 million in upfront and near-term payments, plus up to USD 2,967 million in downstream milestones and single-digit tiered royalties on net product sales. Haisco's obligation under the agreement is to discover and nominate up to five programs; Lilly holds option-like rights over each program as identified, with the handoff occurring at the pre-IND stage. Haisco's pipeline spans small molecules, biologics, and targeted protein degradation, including PROTAC and molecular glue degraders. The company describes its discovery infrastructure as operating across R\&D hubs in Chengdu, Shanghai, and Silicon Valley. Its PROTAC program [HSK29116](https://app.allsci.com/drugs/ASC-DR-0000000028030-1.0-1772718717), a BTK degrader, was among the first domestically developed protein degrader candidates to enter clinical trials in China. The press release only describes the nominated programs as targeting "innovative" biology. Geographic rights are split into two tiers. For certain programs, Lilly obtains exclusive worldwide rights. For others, Lilly receives exclusive rights outside mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan — collectively the "Haisco Territory" — with Haisco retaining development and commercialization rights within that geography. The press release does not specify how many of the five programs fall into each category. ### The deal context The Haisco–Lilly deal is the latest in a series of large China-to-global pharmaceutical licensing agreements, reflecting a broader trend for multinational pharma increasingly sourcing preclinical and discovery-stage programs from Chinese biotechs rather than waiting for clinical proof-of-concept. Haisco is also emerging as a strong licensing partner, with Lilly's deal the third major tie-up announced this year. In April 2026, Haisco [handed a portfolio of novel pain compounds to AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV)](https://allsci.com/news/licensing-deals/haisco-pharma-hands-novel-pain-compound-portfolio-to-abbvie-for-usd-745m/) in a deal valued at up to USD 745 million, while in January 2026, the company [licensed HSK39004, a dual-target COPD candidate, to AirNexis](https://app.allsci.com/news/ASC-NR-0000000568614-1.0-1774444650) in a transaction exceeding USD 1 billion. Meanwhile, Lilly has continued an aggressive dealmaking strategy in 2026 focused on sourcing external innovation. In March, it entered a broad discovery partnership [with Insilico Medicine](https://allsci.com/news/insilico-medicine-and-lilly-sign-usd-2-75b-multi-target-ai-drug-discovery-collaboration/), spanning multiple therapeutic areas and valued at up to USD 2.75 billion. It followed that agreement with an April [partnership with Profluent ](https://allsci.com/news/licensing-deals/eli-lilly-and-profluent-partner-on-ai-designed-recombinases-for-genetic-medicine-in-potential-usd-2-25b-deal/)focused on AI-designed genetic medicines worth up to USD 2.25 billion. --- Spot something wrong? [Report an issue with this article](https://newsgen-prod.reframedata.com/feedback/eli-lilly-haisco-partnership-strikes-usd-305b)