Sorry, I have been busy but thought it worth pointing out that I mentioned this before and am pleased you connected the issues. Allow me to offer a bit more...
As a Chinese company, as it typical of Chinese businesses, not much is transparent. The reason? Excluding foreign businesses operating in China, the fact is that no Chinese business exists without the blessing of the government. And, this blessing includes the access to deep pockets. I think there is much about that we can glean from a look at Humanwell. So, here is what more I can say...
Humanwell's product portfolio does seem to bend toward a fit for opioids; as they focus on various ailments that would attend to such a focus. Still, it is a laundry list and a good way to fit into it whatever they want. Be that as it may, I took a closer look at them and here is what I might add, some of which you may have seen.
1. Their website was last changed in 2014; so no mention of Epic. More the result of intent than accident or laziness. The desired lack of transparency is, well, apparent.
2. Their “Articles of Association” (might be a Chinese term) were amended on August 2, 2016; what that means is not clear
3. They are on the Shanghai stock exchange; so there are a public company (as public as the government lets such entities get)
4. They have Li Jie as President and Board Member. I mention this because he is represented as a Distinguished Expert of China’s State Council (high party member). This party affiliation shows control by the Chinese government. But, it also means they have access to funds to make whatever deals they want. I know this from my old days dealing with foreign governments in my corporate role. It is how a small computer & electronics repair shop ended up with the ability to buy IBM’s PC business. We know them now as Lenovo. Yep, that Lenovo. And, yes, they are into cellphones these days.
5. Puracap was created; it seems to me, as an entity for the purposes of entering into the US pharma market. I thought the following an interesting piece of their Epic acquisition announcement - it can be found at the bottom of the story and suggests the role of Humanwell is merely to be the corporate face with an acquisition strategy; not an atypical approach to growth as we can see from Pfizer, et al… "Humanwell Healthcare (Group) Co., Ltd is a fully integrated life science company that focuses on investing, developing and managing healthcare companies."
6. Also, there is this… "The addition of Epic is an important addition to the PuraCap family. We look forward to it being a platform for the development of our generic pharmaceutical business, both in the USA as well as internationally."
7. They claim partnerships with J&J and Roche, as well as the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences. Once again, indicating state influence and involvement.
8. Something I did not see before because I was not looking for it is this very notable statement that tells us they have deep pockets and a willingness to pay large sums to get what they want… "The total acquisition amount, $550m, is nearly 10 times the combined net profit of the two firms in 2015 ($57m). Following this deal, both firms will become wholly-owned Humanwell subsidiaries."
I think I will leave it there…
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