Unlocking and Accelerating Growth: 

Healthcare and Life Sciences in Asia Pacific

Across Asia Pacific, healthcare and life sciences breakthroughs offer exciting opportunities to meet patient needs and create value, but rising costs and market uncertainty also apply significant pressure to operations and balance sheets.

 

These dual conditions represent a chance for innovators, investors and healthcare & life sciences businesses to protect, unlock and accelerate growth through both top line and bottom line considerations. 

Video Player is loading.
Loaded: 0%
Current Time 0:00
Duration 0:00
Remaining Time 0:00
 
1x

From governments to private investors, big pharma to biotechs, organizations inside and outside the region are reimagining healthcare and life sciences to improve access, outcomes and affordability. This requires capital investment, collaboration and change at levels rarely seen before.

 

In our digital campaign, we explore this dynamic through two main themes and identify six key market opportunities. Additionally, you can explore legal insights and practical takeaways to help you unlock and protect growth –including cross-border deals, commercial collaborations, executing effective corporate divestitures and carve-outs, trade compliance best practice, IP protection, data protection, takeover bids, supply chain due diligence, preparing for ESG-driven litigation, and more.

Healthcare Transformation

Improving the Top Line

A desire to expand healthcare access, quality and affortability is driving transformation-focussed investment

READ MORE

Operational Resilience

Protecting the Bottom Line

A drive for cost savings and flexible solutions is generating resilience-driven investment opportunities.

READ MORE

Healthcare Transformation

Why Asia Pacific is a magnet for innovation and investment

Three unique dynamics define healthcare in the region, which reinforce the need to expand access, quality and affordability:

Rapidly aging
population

Rapidly aging population

The rising ageing population is placing additional strain on healthcare systems already feeling the effects of increasing chronic conditions and labor shortages.

Low density 
of skilled healthcare professionals

Growing group of digital natives with spending power

What is driving healthcare transformation and who are the key players?

1

Two key centers of transformation exist.

How and where assessment, treatment and monitoring are conducted

Next generation telehealth players are building a wider ecosystem of online and offline providers that provide patients with personalized tools for behavior change and self-monitoring.

2

The devices and drugs being developed to support new delivery models

Three key market opportunities for healthcare transformation

Attracting investment
for critical innovation

Accelerating the shift to personalized and preventative medicine through AI

We are seeing strong interest in Asia by global pharmaceuticals and biotechs, including billion dollar plus global deals involving platform technologies and regional deals targeting specific Asian markets.

Oren Livne, Partner, the USA

DOWNLOAD NOW

Telehealth and digital therapeutics are the new normal, and regulators are strengthening rules to protect patient data, ensure safety and support positive patient outcomes. 


Cybersecurity is also front of mind in an increasingly digital industry.

Regulators are weighing regulatory approaches to AI, with different jurisdictions fevering different regimes. 

Numerous jurisdictions are enforcing against failures to file. Identify these regulatory hurdles as early as possible in transaction discussions so you can incorporate these considerations into your transaction strategy, budgets and deal timetable. 

Protecting IP and managing liability to avoid disputes should be high on the agenda, particularly as collaboration between digital players, big pharmaceuticals 
and public institutions grows. 

Private equity interest in healthcare assets, particularly core plus’ assets, remains strong in Asia Pacific. Some Asian healthcare focused private equity firms are engaged in capital raising for new funds focused on investing in the healthcare sector in southeast Asia. Moreover, continuation funds are being deployed by some private equity firms to roll over the ownership of existing well performing healthcare assets.

Zhang Hong, Partner, Baker McKenzie FenXun

FenXun established a joint operation office with Baker McKenzie 

in China as Baker McKenzie FenXun, which was approved by the Shanghai Justice Bureau in 2015.

DOWNLOAD NOW

WATCH VIDEO

Carve-outs, spin-offs and take-private deals are increasingly important features of the market, 
as corporates address balance sheet vulnerabilities and redeploy capital for growth. 


Minimizing disruptions by having rigorous planning vis-à-vis IP protection, data security strategies, governance frameworks and regulatory obligations will be key.

Asia Pacific is a global production powerhouse, and outsourced manufacturing and distribution is of huge strategic importance to global healthcare and life sciences companies in the region.

Understanding contractual terms and liabilities, particularly in relation to ESG, managing IP risk is key to maintaining resilience in third party agreements. 

Trade compliance is one of the most complex and high stakes legal consideration for global players in Asia Pacific, particularly as scrutiny of tariff classification, customs valuations, duties and product origin verification rises. 
Getting up to speed on what is driving audit activity and taking a proactive, localized approach will promote operational resilience.

Transparency and accountability are key trends for corporates globally. Having a clear view of ESG obligations and performance, operational risks and litigation hotspots will help ensure disclosures are made appropriately. 
Additionally, leadership commitment, corporate governance and a robust ESG compliance program are crucial to success. 

Key Contacts 

Intellectual Property

Elisabeth White 

Partner, Australia

+61 2 8922 5386

elisabeth.white
@bakermckenzie.com

Isabella Liu

Partner, Hong Kong
+852 2846 1689
isabella.liu
@bakermckenzie.com

Elisabeth White 

Partner, Australia
+61 2 8922 5386
elisabeth.white
@bakermckenzie.com

Kherk Ying Chew  

Partner, Malaysia
+603 2298 7933
kherkying.chew
@wongpartners.com

Ren Jun Lim  

Principal, Singapore
+65 6434 2721
ren.jun.lim
@bakermckenzie.com

Powered by Ceros

Three unique dynamics define healthcare in the region, which reinforce the need to expand access, quality and affordability:

Low density 

Growing group of digital natives with spending power

Rapidly aging
population

Rapidly aging
population

Rapidly aging
population

Rapidly aging population

The rising ageing population is placing additional strain on healthcare systems already feeling the effects of increasing chronic conditions and labor shortages.

As demand continues to surge, the supply of trained medical professionals and related industries fall short, leading to increasing pressure to deliver more with less. 

The rising spending power and volume of the middles class will place increasing demand on digitally enabled end-to-end solutions to proactively manage their health and wellbeing.

Low density 
of skilled healthcare professionals

Low density 
of skilled healthcare professionals

Low density 
of skilled healthcare professionals

Growing group of digital natives with spending power

Growing group of digital natives with spending power

Growing group of digital natives with spending power

What is driving healthcare transformation and who are the key players?

1

Two key centers of transformation exist.

How and where assessment, treatment and monitoring are conducted

Next generation telehealth players are building a wider ecosystem of online and offline providers that provide patients with personalized tools for behavior change and self-monitoring.

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Biotech and pharmaceutical companies are powering advancements in cell therapies, synthetic biology, gene sequencing and editing. 

AI technology platforms are accelerating the discovery of new molecules and antibodies, and enabling prediction and personalization in cutting edge devices.

Digital therapeutics companies are delivering increasingly sophisticated and connected devices that empower patients to monitor their own conditions and provide real-time custom health recommendations. 

   
   

Hospital-at-home care providers are increasingly meeting patient needs flexibly, quickly and efficiently outside of clinical settings, to improve patient outcomes while reducing costs.

   

2

The devices and drugs being developed to support new delivery models

Three key market opportunities for healthcare transformation

Accelerating the shift to personalized and preventative medicine through AI

Attracting investment
for critical innovation