Hengrui Medicine's former chairman Zhou Yunshu makes a comeback, appointed as CEO of Xiangsheng Pharmaceutical with an annual salary of 6 million HKD; previously fined for insider trading.

Source: The Times Weekly — Times Online

On March 25, BeiGene? (02096.HK) issued an announcement stating that Zhou Yunshu has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer, responsible for overseeing the group’s overall management of business operations, effective from March 25, 2026. In addition, Zhou Yunshu will be entitled to receive an annual remuneration of HKD 6 million, plus discretionary bonuses. Meanwhile, the former CEO, Ren Jinsheng, will continue to serve as the company’s Chairman and Executive Director, focusing on formulating the group’s long-term strategy, making major investment decisions, and overseeing the board of directors’ fulfillment of duties.

Tiemai Finance noted that rumors about Zhou Yunshu joining BeiGene? have long been circulating. As early as December 2025, he attended a strategic cooperation signing ceremony between Jiangsu Cancer Hospital and BeiGene? in the capacity of “President of the BeiGene? Group,” drawing widespread market attention. At that time, BeiGene? said “the information is not entirely accurate,” and now, with the announcement released, this personnel matter suspense that has continued for several months has finally been settled.

Figure source: Announcement screenshot

Public information shows that Zhou Yunshu is currently 54 years old. His background in the pharmaceutical industry is considered profound, and he has previously been a “veteran-level figure” at Hengrui Medicine (600276.SH). After graduating from China Pharmaceutical University in 1995, he joined Lianyungang Pharmaceutical Factory (i.e., the predecessor of Hengrui Medicine) and has been closely tied to Hengrui Medicine for 26 years. During that period, Zhou Yunshu held multiple positions, including a member of the foreign trade department, section chief and deputy minister, deputy general manager, and general manager.

In January 2020, at the age of 49, Zhou Yunshu succeeded Sun Piaoyang to become Chairman of Hengrui Medicine. In an internal speech, Sun Piaoyang described him as the “best candidate” to take over, and in particular recognized his capabilities in sales management. However, less than two years into his term, in July 2021, Hengrui Medicine announced that Zhou Yunshu stepped down from all positions at the company due to “health reasons,” and Sun Piaoyang returned to the helm.

In September 2022, an “Administrative Penalty Decision” issued by the Heilongjiang regulatory bureau of the China Securities Regulatory Commission shed another light on what lay behind his resignation.

The “Administrative Penalty Decision” indicates that Zhou Yunshu was determined to have been aware of insider information regarding a cooperation agreement that Hengrui Medicine and Sihuan? (603520.SH) and its affiliated companies planned to draft. From April to May 2020, he used a third-party account to buy and sell shares of Zhejiang Sihuan?. Such conduct was determined to constitute insider trading. Therefore, Zhou Yunshu was subject to an administrative penalty, including confiscation of illegal proceeds of approximately RMB 450,000 and a fine of RMB 500,000.

After that, Zhou Yunshu briefly faded from public view. The appointment announcement released by BeiGene? shows that before joining BeiGene?, between August 2022 and October 2025, he served as a full-time consultant at Innovent Biopharmaceuticals (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. (an affiliate of Innovent Biopharmaceuticals (01801.HK)), mainly responsible for providing professional guidance to Innovent on market strategy and commercialization.

Regarding the matter in which Zhou Yunshu was fined for insider trading, BeiGene? stated in its announcement that the insider trading involved an individual case that had already been subject to administrative penalties, and could not reflect his overall professional conduct. It also disclosed relevant background investigations, consultation with legal experts, and a legal training commitment letter issued by Zhou Yunshu himself.

In its announcement, BeiGene? said that the board of directors believes that his appointment will significantly strengthen the company’s business development in multiple areas, especially in innovative drug R&D and commercialization, and that appointing Zhou Yunshu as Chief Executive Officer is in the overall interests of the company and all its shareholders.

Figure source: Announcement screenshot

On March 26, a pharmaceutical industry analyst told Tiemai Finance that Zhou Yunshu did indeed face controversy due to insider trading, but since he has joined BeiGene?, there is hope that it will help address the latter’s shortcomings in innovative drug commercialization. “BeiGene? now already has 10 innovative drugs approved for launch, and the next key is how to grow sales figures, which happens to be what Zhou Yunshu is best at. The meaning in BeiGene?’s announcement is also very clear: employing people is subject to careful consideration, and what they value is ability.”

Similar to his experience at Hengrui Medicine, BeiGene?’s entrepreneurial history can also be traced back to 1995. In its early days, the company also relied on generic drugs to establish itself, and starting in 2006 it “moved away from generics and toward innovation.” In recent years, the transformation of BeiGene? has been notably effective. The latest disclosed financial reports show that in 2025, the company achieved total revenue of RMB 7.731 billion, up 16.5% year over year; profit attributable to equity shareholders of the company reached RMB 1.344 billion, up sharply 86.2% year over year. Of this, revenue from the innovative drug business was RMB 6.304 billion, accounting for 81.5% of total revenue, up 27.9% from RMB 4.928 billion in 2024.

In addition, in recent years BeiGene? has also been very active in overseas licensing of innovative drugs. In 2025, the company’s oncology innovative drug platform, BeiGene? Zaiming, successively reached three BD (business development) transactions with AbbVie, Ipsen, and NextCure, with total potential value exceeding USD 2.8 billion, plus step-up royalties.

This January, BeiGene? made another move. At that time, BeiGene? and Boehringer Ingelheim reached an exclusive licensing and cooperation agreement for a TL1A/IL-23p19 bispecific antibody for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) for exclusive global rights outside the Greater China region. The upfront payment was EUR 42 million, and milestone payments could reach up to EUR 1.016 billion, becoming the first major BD deal of 2026 so far coming out of China.

Going forward, whether Zhou Yunshu can further improve BeiGene?’s commercialization system and accelerate its global expansion by leveraging his industry experience will remain the focus of ongoing market attention.

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责任编辑：刘生傲