Latest news with #AstellasPharma
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Nikkei Asia
a day ago
- Nikkei Asia
China urged Astellas employee to take plea bargain on spy charge: source
An employee of Japan's Astellas Pharma was sentenced to three and a half years in prison by a Beijing court on July 16. © Kyodo YUKIO TAJIMA BEIJING -- Chinese authorities encouraged a detained Japanese employee of Astellas Pharma to confess to espionage charges in exchange for a reduced sentence, a source told Nikkei. The Astellas employee was sentenced Wednesday to three and a half years in prison by a Beijing court. According to a source familiar with the case, the court ruled that he had passed on Chinese internal information at the request of Japanese intelligence in return for compensation, which constituted espionage.
Japan Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
Astellas employee won't appeal spying conviction in China
A Japanese employee of Astellas Pharma in his 60s, who was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for espionage in China on Wednesday, has no intention to appeal the ruling for now, informed sources said Saturday. As China uses a two-tier court system, those who are dissatisfied with the first ruling can appeal to a higher court. In the Astellas employee's case, his sentence will be finalized if he does not file an appeal by the deadline in late July. A Beijing district court that imposed the prison sentence on the employee is believed to have found him guilty of espionage for providing information about Chinese politics and the economy to an intelligence agency. Japanese Ambassador to China Kenji Kanasugi and other Japanese Embassy officials were allowed to observe Wednesday's sentencing session. Kanasugi said that the sentence was "extremely regrettable," but he did not provide details of the ruling presented in court. The employee was detained by Chinese authorities in March 2023, when he was about to leave China after completing his assignment. He was indicted in August 2024. The administration of Chinese President Xi Jinping, which places importance on national security, established an anti-espionage law in 2014 to enhance the detection of spies. Since then, 17 Japanese nationals have been detained for alleged espionage activities, including five who are still in custody. The Japanese government will continue to press for the early release of all of them.
Nikkei Asia
4 days ago
- Politics
- Nikkei Asia
China's jailing of Astellas employee could have gone differently: ex-envoy
Former Japanese ambassador to China, Hideo Tarumi, said he believes the people of both countries will continue to support each other, as they have throughout history. © Reuters KENJI KAWASE TOKYO -- The sentencing of a Japanese employee of Astellas Pharma on espionage charges by a Beijing court on Wednesday could have had a different outcome, says Hideo Tarumi, a former Japanese ambassador to China. The verdict has shocked those who work in or deal with China.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Astellas and KISED link to support Korean pharma startups
Astellas Pharma has entered a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Korea Institute of Startup and Entrepreneurship Development (KISED) to support Korean pharmaceutical startups' global growth. Astellas and KISED will operate the Partnership with Global Companies Program, which aims to identify these startups in Korea. Astellas chief research and development officer Tadaaki Taniguchi stated: 'We are very pleased to agree on an MoU with KISED for the operation of the Partnership with Global Companies Program. 'Astellas is committed to fostering innovation in collaboration with startups by providing the knowledge and expertise we have gained through our research and global network. We expect that the signing of this MoU will further strengthen and accelerate drug discovery research together with Korean startups, ultimately contributing to the creation of innovative medical solutions.' KISED will oversee management and provide research funding for the programme. Astellas will offer selected Korean drug-discovery startups access to facilities at SakuLab-Tsukuba within its Tsukuba research centre. These startups will benefit from consultations with Astellas experts and opportunities to expedite their drug discovery research by networking with other residents and researchers at the company. The initiative has already seen two Korean pharma and biotech firms chosen for collaboration: TCUBEiT, focusing on next-generation T-cell-based immunotherapy, and AAVATAR Therapeutics, specialising in AAV viral vector engineering technology. Both companies will commence an intensive collaborative phase by establishing operations at SakuLab-Tsukuba. In May 2025, Astellas Pharma entered an exclusive licensing agreement with Evopoint Biosciences for XNW27011, a clinical-stage antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) that targets Claudin18.2 (CLDN18.2). Astellas agreed to pay Evopoint $130m upfront and up to $70m in near-term payments along with development, commercialisation and regulatory milestone payments totalling up to $1.34bn, and royalties on the ADC's net sales if approved. "Astellas and KISED link to support Korean pharma startups" was originally created and published by Pharmaceutical Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Factbox-Foreign firms' executives entangled in Chinese probes
BEIJING (Reuters) -U.S. bank Wells Fargo has suspended all travel to China after one of its employees was barred from leaving the country, extending a trend of foreign executives caught up in probes by authorities that has chilled business sentiment. Below are some other recent examples: - A Beijing court this week sentenced a Japanese employee of Astellas Pharma to 3-1/2 years in prison. The man had been detained since March 2023 on suspicion of spying and had been indicted about a year ago. - In March, Chinese authorities released employees of U.S. corporate due diligence firm Mintz Group detained in Beijing two years ago. Five of the firm's local staff were detained in a raid that turned out to be the beginning of a sweeping crackdown on consultancy and due diligence firms, including Bain & Company's office in Shanghai. A Singaporean executive at Mintz was also prevented from leaving China, sources told Reuters. China fined Mintz about $1.5 million in July 2024 for doing "unapproved statistical work". - Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca saw its China president Leon Wang detained and placed under investigation in 2024, with little information about what the probe was about. Wang, who grew up in China, was a high-profile executive often quoted in the Chinese business press. AstraZeneca's CEO said in February that the company was not permitted to speak with Wang, who has been placed under extended leave since December. Chinese media had reported that AstraZeneca was under probe since 2021, suspected of fabricating genetic testing results related to the firm's lung cancer drug Tagrisso and of insurance fraud. - A senior Nomura Holdings banker overseeing the Japanese firm's investment banking operations in China was ordered not to leave the mainland, sources told Reuters in late 2023. The exit ban was lifted the following year allowing Charles Wang Zhonghe, China investment banking chairman at Nomura, to return to Hong Kong, where he was previously based, according to the Financial Times. - Michael Chan, a senior executive at U.S. risk advisory firm Kroll, was barred from leaving the Chinese mainland, the Wall Street Journal reported in September 2023. The Hong Kong passport holder was assisting in an investigation dating back a few years, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Neither Kroll nor Chan was the target of the investigation, according to the newspaper. - A Singapore-based UBS wealth manager was prevented from leaving China in 2018. The executive was asked to remain in the country to meet with local authorities, Reuters reported at that time. The uncertainty surrounding the exit ban on the wealth manager had led the Swiss bank and several of its rivals to require their private banking staff to carefully consider trips to China.
