Hansoh Pharma, a pharmaceutical firm based in China, has entered into a global licensing agreement with Merck for HS-10535; an investigational preclinical oral small molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist targeted at the treatment of obesity.

As part of the agreement, Hansoh Pharma has granted Merck an exclusive global license to manufacture, develop and commercialise HS-10535. Hansoh Pharma will receive an initial payment of $112 million from Merck, followed by a potential sum of $1.9 billion in conditional milestone payments as well as sale royalties. Hansoh Pharma retains the right to either co-promote or solely commercialise HS-10535 in China, subject to certain conditions.