Everest Medicines Expands into Ophthalmology with Licensing Agreement for Retinal Disease Candidate in Asia

Everest Medicines announced it has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Visara, a subsidiary of NovaBridge Biosciences to develop, manufacture, and commercialize VIS-101 in Greater China, Singapore, South Korea, and select Southeast Asian countries. This collaboration marks Everest’s entry into the ophthalmology sector.

VIS-101 is a novel bifunctional biologic targeting VEGF-A and ANG-2, designed to provide enhanced potency and longer-lasting therapeutic benefits compared to existing treatments for wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), diabetic macular edema (DME), and retinal vein occlusion (RVO). The candidate has completed initial safety and dose-escalation studies in both the United States and China and is currently completing a randomized, dose-ranging phase 2 study in China. The program is expected to be phase 3-ready by 2026.

Under the agreement, Everest Medicines will make an upfront payment of $7 million (approximately RMB49.7 million), reimburse up to $3.4 million (RMB24.0 million) in prior expenses, and provide up to $89 million (approximately RMB632 million) in milestone payments. Additional tiered royalties will be paid based on future net sales.

“We are pleased to collaborate with Visara,” said Rogers Yongqing Luo, Chief Executive Officer of Everest Medicines. “This partnership brings a highly differentiated and commercially attractive asset to Everest’s late-stage pipeline and marks our entry into ophthalmology, a therapeutically attractive area with significant unmet medical needs. Leveraging Everest’s clinical development and commercialization expertise, we look forward to advancing VIS-101—a potential best-in-class bifunctional antibody—towards commercialization in China and across Asia.”