Sentivera secures US$76M deal for Haisco’s preclinical immunology drug
The two firms launched Metsera in 2022, and the biotech emerged from stealth in 2024 after securing US$290 million in financing.
USA—Population Health Partners and ARCH Venture Partners have launched Sentivera, a new US biotech beginning operations with an exclusive licensing deal for a preclinical immunology drug from China-based Haisco Pharmaceutical.
The investors, who previously backed obesity-focused biotech Metsera, have not disclosed Sentivera’s broader development strategy.
However, its first licensing agreement suggests that the company will focus on therapies for type 2 inflammatory diseases.
On 25 August, Haisco announced that it had entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Sentivera, granting the US biotech global rights to develop, manufacture, and commercialize its preclinical immunology asset outside Greater China.
Sentivera will pay Haisco approximately US$76 million upfront.
In addition, the agreement includes development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments that could take the total deal value above US$1.5 billion.
Haisco will also receive royalties on sales of the drug in markets where it secures regulatory approval.
Drug targets type 2 inflammation
Haisco described the candidate as its “core immunology asset” and said it is designed to inhibit the development and progression of type 2 inflammatory diseases.
The company has not yet disclosed which specific indications Sentivera plans to investigate.
Type 2 inflammation contributes to several respiratory, dermatological and gastrointestinal conditions, creating a broad range of potential applications for therapies targeting this biological pathway.
According to Haisco, preclinical studies have demonstrated strong anti-inflammatory activity and a favourable safety profile for the candidate.
The company also said China’s National Medical Products Administration authorised the asset to enter clinical trials in August 2026.
Haisco said it remains “highly confident in the future global market performance of this asset,” although Sentivera has yet to provide details of its clinical development programme.
NewCo model gains traction
The transaction uses a NewCo partnership structure, rather than the conventional licensing model in which a drug developer directly transfers rights to a larger pharmaceutical company.
Under the NewCo approach, the rights to an asset are transferred to a newly established company, with investors and participating companies holding equity in the venture.
The model has become increasingly prominent in cross-border deals involving Chinese drug developers and US pharmaceutical companies because it allows participants to share more directly in the asset’s future value.
For Population Health Partners and ARCH Venture Partners, Sentivera represents another opportunity to replicate Metsera’s success.
The two firms launched Metsera in 2022, and the biotech emerged from stealth in 2024 after securing US$290 million in financing.
Metsera specialised in developing long-acting treatments for obesity and later attracted competing interest from Pfizer and Novo Nordisk.
Pfizer won the bidding process in late 2025, acquiring Metsera for US$10 billion, one of the largest pharmaceutical mergers and acquisitions deals of that year.
Sentivera now gives the same investors another platform to develop potentially high-value therapies, this time in immunology.
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