CMS Marks SGX Secondary Listing with Strategic Push into Southeast Asia’s Pharma Frontier

SINGAPORE, July 21, 2025 — China Medical System Holdings Limited (CMS) has officially marked its secondary listing on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) with a high-level industry forum, signalling a bold new phase in the company’s global strategy to tap into emerging markets.

Held on July 15 at CMS’s PharmaGend manufacturing facility in Tuas, Singapore, the “Singapore and Emerging Markets Pharmaceutical Industry Growth Forum” brought together over 150 key stakeholders — including senior officials, biotech executives, investors, and leading pharmaceutical voices — to explore new paradigms for pharmaceutical expansion and innovation across Southeast Asia, the Middle East and other emerging regions.

The event, jointly hosted by SGX and CMS, served not only to commemorate the Group’s SGX listing but also to reinforce Singapore’s position as a vital launchpad for Chinese pharmaceutical companies seeking international reach.

SGX Listing to Spur Regional Connectivity

In her opening remarks, Ms. Caihan Chia, Head of Greater China Capital Markets at SGX, underlined the strategic importance of the listing. “With Singapore’s robust financial ecosystem, open policy environment and growing interest from Chinese enterprises, CMS’s secondary listing demonstrates confidence in Singapore as a regional capital hub for healthcare innovation,” she said.

Singapore Economic Development Board’s Louise Ho and A*STAR’s Kah Yean Neo also lent their perspectives, while keynote speakers including L.E.K. Consulting’s Shriharsha Sarkar and CGS International Securities’ Siang Sheng Foo spoke on capital markets and healthcare growth in the region.

Emerging Markets Drive Global Pharma Growth

The forum highlighted how emerging markets — particularly Southeast Asia, the Middle East, India, and Africa — are fast becoming the new growth engine for the pharmaceutical industry. According to IQVIA projections, by 2028 these markets could be worth up to USD 384 billion, rivalling Western Europe’s projected value.

Singapore, with its strategic location, regulatory efficiency, and life sciences ecosystem, is positioning itself as the ideal base for accessing these high-growth regions. CMS’s decision to build its regional hub in Singapore reflects this shift in industry momentum.

CMS’s ‘Dual Hub’ Globalisation Model

Delivering the headline keynote, CMS Chairman and CEO Mr. Lam Kong outlined the Group’s “New CMS” transformation strategy, built around three growth engines: product innovation, commercial transformation, and international expansion.

“Since 2018, CMS has evolved from being China’s leading CSO to a global pharmaceutical enterprise with full value-chain capabilities. The SGX listing is a strategic step to close the loop on our global value chain of R&D, manufacturing, commercialisation, and investment,” said Mr. Lam.

CMS’s international expansion is anchored in a dual-track model with China and Singapore as its twin hubs. The Group aims to simultaneously “bring in” international products for the Chinese market and “move out” Chinese innovation to emerging markets via localised operations.

Local Assets with Global Ambition

The forum showcased CMS’s suite of forward-looking international platforms:

PharmaGend, its Tuas-based CMO/CDMO facility, established in 2023, is FDA- and HSA-certified, with plans to expand into injectables and sprays.

Rxilient, founded in 2021, has already filed close to 20 product registration applications across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Greater China.

CMS R&D, set up in Singapore in 2024, is spearheading early-stage research for global deployment.

HiGend, a new 2025 venture, adopts a hub-and-spoke model to incubate early-stage biopharma innovations.

Commercialisation Successes & Strategic Insights

Three high-powered panel discussions brought together experts from CMS and its partners to explore expansion challenges, commercialisation models, and the replicability of Chinese pharma success in emerging markets.

In the first session, CMS shared the success story of Stulln eye drops in China — built on a foundation of clinical value, omnichannel retail strategies, and integrated marketing. Participants from CMS Vision, Pharma Stulln GmbH, and Rxilient reflected on how this could guide product launches in Southeast Asia.

The second panel focused on leveraging partnerships and licensing models to bring Chinese innovation to new markets. Representatives from CMS’s partner companies — including Tibet Nordicon Pharma, NeuroDawn Pharmaceutical, and Mabgeek Biotech — discussed innovative drugs such as XinHuoSu and ABP-671, and how to align R&D with global regulatory standards and local market needs.

The final session, moderated by Legend Capital’s Frank Hong, centred on the globalisation of Chinese drug innovation. Speakers from leading investment banks highlighted the importance of moving from isolated licensing deals to sustained industrial ecosystems that span R&D, manufacturing, and commercial execution.

A Blueprint for Global Growth

With its fully localised infrastructure, CMS is crafting a new playbook for Chinese pharmaceutical firms to globalise through Southeast Asia. Beyond regulatory filings and product launches, the company is building long-term capabilities — from clinical development and manufacturing to omnichannel commercial models.

“The next decade belongs to emerging markets,” Mr. Lam Kong asserted, inviting partners across innovation, regulation, and investment to collaborate with CMS. “We aim to deliver world-class therapies from China to patients across Asia and beyond.”

As the pharmaceutical industry reconfigures around new global growth nodes, CMS’s strategic pivot through Singapore signals a wider trend: the centre of gravity for pharma innovation, capital, and commercial opportunity is steadily shifting toward the emerging markets of Asia. And Singapore, with its unique connectivity and credibility, is poised to lead this next chapter.