Scrip Perspectives
Industry leaders predict pricing uncertainty will force companies to abandon blanket global launches. However, AI platforms will reshape commercial execution and new access models will break down barriers limiting patient reach.
While a record number of China-originated first-in-class drugs were approved domestically in 2025, only one has so far entered clinical development overseas with its originator as the sole sponsor. But more progress is expected this year.
Scrip Asks... What Does 2026 Hold For Biopharma? Part 2: Competitive Dynamics – A Landscape Reshaped
Industry leaders predict that competitive dynamics in 2026 will be fundamentally reshaped by China's speed and cost advantages, forcing western biopharma to rethink what it takes to win. Meanwhile, the sustainability of traditional biotech's role as innovation middleman is called into question.
Industry leaders, executives and investors forecast that M&A will accelerate in 2026, driven by patent cliff urgency. However, capital is becoming more selective, flowing towards proven assets, novel biology and innovative financing structures.
Some negative or mixed studies had significant negative effects on their sponsors, while others rolled off their backs. Scrip takes a look at five trials that missed the mark or hit it, but not enough to yield positive results.
After no M&A transactions reached the $5bn threshold in 2024, J&J, Pfizer, Novartis and Merck & Co. all signed on for biopharma takeouts valued at $9bn or higher in 2025.
2025 saw star products debut in India as foreign firms doubled down on high-value, IP-protected therapies. Experts tell Scrip the top 10 cities in the country can now sustain “US/EU-style” specialty launches.
In 2025, the number of global Phase III trials that included US sites and were initiated by Chinese biopharma companies as the sole sponsor fell slightly, but multiple plans are in the works for 2026 following US IND approvals.
Terns and Relmada were two small cap companies which pulled off perfect pivots in 2025, ditching failed assets to finding success in a new therapy area. However, many other small firms struggled to stay afloat, with ‘zombie killer’ firms emerging to finish them off.
Many new drugs that launched in the US over the last year entered competitive markets and few generated notable revenue in the early months.
There has not been a dull moment in the biopharma sector this year. With just a day left, and in no particular order, Scrip takes a look at five of the biggest stories of 2025.
The Korean biopharma industry in 2025 was marked by some major deals involving smaller companies, while the improving investment climate could see further activity in selected areas in 2026.
Industry veterans put themselves in Novo’s shoes, suggesting pricing manoeuvres and tactical measures to blunt competition in India post semaglutide’s LOE in 2026. There’s also court action to watch.
R&D advances are grist to the pharma mill, and those clinical trials that can be deemed successes are particularly welcome. Here are the top five or so study hits (many come in pairs) that got readers clicking in 2025.
A Scrip analysis of cash positions, balance sheets and revenue at risk from patent loss and conference call commentary highlights M&A appetite among large pharma as well as mid-sized players.
With Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy joining Madrigal’s Rezdiffra as an FDA-approved MASH treatment, doctors now can choose between direct liver benefits or pursuing weight loss.
The world’s biggest pharmaceutical companies mostly saw growth in 2024 but 2025 promises to be more of a mixed bag with headwinds including losses of exclusivity, Medicare Part D redesign and challenges in the Chinese market.
Over 140 biopharma leaders share their views on developments to watch for in key therapeutic areas this year. Advances in multiple scientific fields are opening up new avenues for treatment.
All the elements for a big M&A year are in place, but political uncertainty and interest rates could push more deals into the second half of the year, according to business development experts at BIO CEO & Investor.
Scrip surveys some of the more interesting Phase III clinical trial readouts expected this year.