(Yicai) April 23 -- Shanghai's Pudong New Area, which has become a biomedical industry cluster, is linking arms with drugmaker Sino Biopharmaceutical to set up a CNY1 billion (USD136.8 million) fund to invest in companies in the sector.

The Sino Biopharm Leading Private Investment Fund was launched yesterday with an initial CNY500 million (USD68.4 million) from Pudong Venture Capital, Sino Biopharm, local private equity investment firm Fortera Capital, and Hangzhou-based filtration tech provider Cobetter, the Pudong New Area's authority announced on the same day.

The fund will focus on investing in innovative biopharma firms in the growth stage, assisting their research and development, production and sales, and solving the industry snags of financing difficulties, long investment cycles, and high risks, the authority said.

"For high-quality biopharma companies with growth potential, we need to ensure that they can receive financial support at different stages of development," said Xu Lai, a member of the Standing Committee of the Pudong New Area Party Committee.

The area will come up with more policies and measures to support the industry’s development, continue to build platforms, integrate resources, optimize services, and attract talent, she added.

After 35 years of development, Pudong New Area has established a comprehensive biomedical supply chain and innovation ecosystem. The sector grew 2.1 percent last year to reach CNY410 billion (USD56 billion), accounting for nearly 42 percent of Shanghai’s total biomedical industry, according to official figures.

Sino Biopharm owns several big drugmakers, including Chia Tai Tianqing Pharmaceutical Group and Beijing Tide Pharmaceutical. Its net profit surged 50 percent to CNY3.5 billion (USD478.6 million) last year on a 10 percent jump in revenue to CNY28.9 billion (USD4 billion), according to its annual financial report.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Martin Kadiev