When analyzing why companies trigger milestone payments, key advances in clinical development are the most common driver.

For an innovative drug still in development, every meaningful clinical step serves as critical validation of its technical strategy and team execution. Milestone payments from partners are like a vote of confidence for staged success.

Whether advancing to a new phase or hitting a predefined endpoint, it means R&D risks are declining and product value emerging. Simcere and Bioligic, mentioned earlier, are typical examples.

In January 2025, Simcere and AbbVie struck a BD deal under which AbbVie gained overseas rights to SIM0500 with a total potential deal value of $1.055 billion.SIM0500 is a humanized GPRC5D-BCMA-CD3 trispecific antibody. At signing, it was in Phase I trials in China and the US for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (MM).In June 2025, Simcere announced the first US patient dosing in its Phase I trial.

Now, with $40 million received, Simcere stated in its announcement:“This payment reflects positive progress in the Group’s collaboration with AbbVie to advance the clinical development of SIM0500.”

Bioligic’s $250 million milestone was triggered by the successful initiation of a global Phase III trial for iza-bren.

In December 2023, Bioligic out-licensed iza-bren to BMS under a co-development, co-commercialization (Co-Co) model. The deal made headlines with an **$800 million non-refundable upfront**, plus two near-term contingent milestones of $250 million each, with a total potential value of up to $8.4 billion—setting a global record for ADC single-asset licensing.

At first, skepticism lingered:“Will BMS terminate the deal later?”“Are iza-bren’s data strong enough?”“Will global clinical progress stall?”

The arrival of the $250 million milestone fully refuted such doubts, continuously validating the product’s intrinsic strength and attracting further investment from the partner.

Chasen Biopharma, which received $5 million in milestones last December, followed a similar pattern.

In April last year, Chasen entered a Newco deal with Caldera Therapeutics, granting global exclusive rights for QX030N, a long-acting autoimmune bispecific.Recently, QX030N/CLD-423 was approved by Australia’s HREC, with trials planned to start in early 2026—triggering the milestone.

Chasen noted that the license marked its overseas bispecific pipeline officially entering the clinic, strengthening its leadership in autoimmune and allergic diseases. Both parties will accelerate development to achieve more clinical progress.

The significance of these R&D milestones goes far beyond financial revenue.

Bao Jun, Founding and Managing Partner of Puyuan Innovation, told Tongxieyi:“On one hand, it shows the product is moving forward, and the partner is genuinely investing. On the other hand, the upfront is only a small part of the deal. Milestones are unlocked gradually as risks decrease for the buyer.”

For listed companies, milestones also lift stock performance and investor confidence. After Simcere announced its $40 million payment on February 3, its shares reversed a downward trend and rose 10.7% over seven consecutive days.

Still, Bao cautioned:“Milestones help, but not drastically. If investors were cautious, it’s positive news. If expectations were already extremely high, a single milestone may not change the outlook.”

R&D milestones validate safety and preliminary efficacy, but real value creation lies in successfully translating science into accessible products and winning the market.When trust accumulates in the clinic, value realization naturally advances to the next stage: triggering commercial milestones.

Deeper rewards kick in when a product is approved, launched, and hits specific sales targets. This is not only final confirmation of R&D success, but the start of innovative value converting into sustainable cash flow.

Bio-Thera, mentioned earlier, exemplifies this.The company licensed is ustekinumab biosimilar BAT2206 to different partners by region. Following FDA and EMA approvals and commercial launch, Bio-Thera received $10 million from Hikma and $2.5 million from Gilead Sciences.

This was not the first time. In 2024, Bio-Thera received two milestones totaling $11.5 million simply for submitting BAT2206 for marketing approval.

A consistent recipient of milestone payments, Bio-Thera has publicly disclosed 7 milestone payments since listing, totaling $63.9 million, across BAT2206, BAT1706 (bevacizumab), BAT2506 (golimumab), and other biosimilars.

Beyond initial commercialization, a small number of products successfully launched overseas have delivered ongoing commercial milestones and royalties thanks to strong performance.

As a flagship case of China’s innovative drugs going global, Legend Biotech partnered with Johnson & Johnson for Carvykti in 2017, with a $350 million upfront. Under the agreement, Legend and J&J share costs and profits 7:3 in Greater China and 5:5 in the rest of the world, with J&J leading pricing and access.

Carvykti was first approved by the FDA in 2022 and has since expanded indications. Its global sales climbed steadily, and by early 2025, Legend had received over $400 million in clinical milestones and commercial royalties.

With Carvykti hitting $1.887 billion in sales in 2025—becoming the first blockbuster BCMA CAR-T worldwide—Legend is poised to collect nearly $1 billion in royalties under the profit-sharing terms.

Beyond Legend, Hutchison MediPharma’s fruquintinib, licensed to Takeda in January 2013 for $400 million upfront, has delivered $35 million in milestones following US approval.

In October 2014, Hutchison received $20 million in its first commercial milestone after fruquintinib exceeded $200 million in metastatic colorectal cancer sales. Two months later, it gained another $10 million when the drug was first reimbursed in Europe.

Beyond fruquintinib, Elunate® licensed to Eli Lilly and Orpathya® to AstraZeneca are both sold overseas, with partners supplying manufacturing revenue and royalties. In 2025, these collaborations continued to drive steady cash flow and revenue for Hutchison.

Taken together, R&D milestones and commercial milestones form a complete closed loop of value realization.The former validates “potential,” gradually removing uncertainty and boosting confidence.The latter secures “real rewards,” turning success into tangible returns via sales.

The concentrated arrival of milestone payments is encouraging. Yet stepping back to the global BD landscape, a sober reality emerges:milestones have always been a tough nut to crack.

SRS Acquiom’s 2025 Life Sciences M&A & Deal Report reveals a striking pattern:Over the past decade, more than 60% of milestones in biopharma BD deals were never achieved.By mid-2025, only 22% of due milestones were met, roughly unchanged from 2023.

More alarmingly, difficulty rises exponentially with development stage:

• Preclinical milestone achievement rate (by value): ~55%
• Phase III: down to 12%
• Commercial-stage milestones: only around 5%

This means the vast majority of multi-billion-dollar “total deal values” may remain on paper—stalled at upfront, derailed by pipeline delays, weak data, or partner strategy shifts.

In early global pharma BD, MNCs widely adopted a “spray and pray” model, in-licensing early-stage pipelines in bulk, while biotechs rushed to license out for cash to fund R&D. Both sides had low expectations for milestone delivery, with achievement rates long below 15%.

More importantly, milestones are deeply tied to clinical and commercial performance.To secure hundreds of millions or billions in follow-on payments, biotechs must successfully navigate Phase I, II, III, gain approval, and then achieve blockbuster sales—much like clearing successive game levels.

What are the odds?According to a BIO & Biomedtracker clinical success report, the overall success rate from Phase I to final FDA approval is less than 8%.

Today, the steady flow of milestone payments for innovative drugs carries meaning far beyond cash flow.

First, it is hard proof of R&D capability—hitting milestones in deep international collaboration shows China’s innovative drugs are passing the world’s strictest tests.

More profoundly:The value-realization logic of China’s innovative pharma is evolving from “sign and get paid” to “long-term profit sharing.”

Upfront is the entry ticket, a “vote of confidence.”Sustained milestones and future royalties are the real dividend tickets.

This means a Chinese biotech’s success no longer depends only on financing and out-licensing pipelines. It can now partner deeply with global giants to share value across a drug’s full life cycle—from R&D and clinical trials to launch and sales.

It is a more stable and sustainable model for growth.

Signing a BD deal is never the finish line, nor even the starting point—it is merely the gun for a marathon.The real test comes in the three to five years as partners:Will R&D stay on track?Will data deliver on promises?Can teams build alignment despite differences?

From Simcere to Bioligic, Bio-Thera to Legend Biotech,each milestone hitting the bank account answers these questions in the simplest way:Chinese pharma companies are getting better and better.