SHANGHAI, March 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Everest Medicines (HKEX 1952.HK, "Everest", or the "Company"), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, clinical development, manufacturing, and commercialization of innovative therapeutics, today announced that it has entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with Corxel Pharmaceuticals Hong Kong Limited ("CORXEL"). Under the agreement, the Company has acquired the rights to develop, manufacture, and commercialize CARDAMYST™ (etripamil) nasal spray in Greater China, including Chinese Mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan region.

Under the terms of the agreement, Everest will pay CORXEL an upfront payment of US$30 million (equivalent to approximately RMB344,895,000), as well as potential development milestone payments of up to US$20 million (equivalent to approximately RMB137,958,000). As part of this agreement, Everest will be assigned and transferred rights, interests, claims, duties, obligations and liabilities (other than certain excluded liabilities) under the Milestone License Agreement entered into by CORXEL in May 2021 and certain related ancillary agreements.

CARDAMYST™ (etripamil) nasal spray is a novel, rapid-acting calcium channel blocker as administered as needed via a convenient, portable nasal spray. It offers rapid onset of action, favorable tolerability, and the potential for at-home self-administration, enhancing patient accessibility. In December 2025, CARDAMYST was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), becoming the first and only self-administered nasal spray in more than 30 years capable of converting paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT) to sinus rhythm in adults. As a rapid-acting treatment option, CARDAMYST can be self-administered outside the emergency department or other healthcare settings, enabling patients to actively manage episodes and gain greater control over their condition. In addition to its approved indication for PSVT, etripamil nasal spray is also under clinical development for atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular response (AFib-RVR). Phase II trials have shown encouraging results, and Phase III trials are planned, with the potential to further extend its therapeutic impact to a broader patient population.

In China, the New Drug Application (NDA) for etripamil nasal spray was accepted by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) on January 17, 2025 and is expected to receive approval in the third quarter of 2026.

PSVT is characterized by abnormalities in the heart's electrical system that cause sudden unexpected and often severely symptomatic episodes of rapid heart rate. There are currently no approved self-administered, fast-acting, non-injectable therapies for acute PSVT, leaving patients with limited treatment options beyond emergency care. Approximately 2.3 to 4 per 1,000 individuals are affected by PSVT, representing an estimated 3 to 6 million patients in China.

AFib-RVR is a type of irregular heart rhythm, characterized by an irregular and elevated heart rate. Its onset is typically gradual, episodes are less likely to terminate spontaneously, and the condition tends to recur, significantly increasing the risk of thromboembolism and serious complications such as stroke and heart failure. In China, atrial fibrillation affects an estimated 1.6% of the population, representing nearly 20 million patients, and is expected to increase with an aging population. Both PSVT and AFib-RVR are associated with a loss of control and a significant psychological burden for patients.

Driven by its 2030 Strategy, and led by Mr. Yifang Wu, Chairman of the Board, Everest is accelerating growth through a dual-engine approach that combines strategic business development partnerships with in-house R&D. This transaction further strengthens Everest's expanding cardiovascular franchise, building on recent strategic initiatives and reinforcing the Company's disciplined approach to constructing focused therapeutic verticals with meaningful lifecycle expansion potential. Through continued advancement of its pipeline and product portfolio globally, Everest aims to deliver innovative therapies to more patients, create sustainable long-term value, and advance its position to become a leading global biopharmaceutical company.

"We are pleased to collaborate with CORXEL, this agreement marks an important step in our continued expansion in the cardiovascular field and a meaningful milestone in advancing our growth 2030 strategy," said Mr. Rogers Yongqing Luo, Chief Executive Officer of Everest Medicines. "PSVT is a large and significantly underserved market in China, with no fast-acting, non-injectable, self-administered therapies approved for the acute treatment of PSVT. CARDAMYST provides an innovative on-demand treatment option that empowers patients to manage episodes anytime and anywhere. It is currently the only therapy designed for at-home self-administration to enable the acute termination of PSVT and AFib-RVR episodes, addressing a significant unmet medical need among patients in China. We will leverage our clinical development expertise and established commercialization platform to accelerate its advancement and future launch in Greater China, while further strengthening our cardiovascular franchise and unlocking its broader potential across atrial arrhythmias."

"Since acquiring the rights to develop and commercialize etripamil nasal spray in 2021 in Greater China, CORXEL has quickly rolled out its clinical development program and submitted its NDA application following positive topline data from the China Phase 3 trial for treating PSVT. This demonstrates CORXEL's strong execution capability in developing innovative medicines with speed and quality," said Ms. Sandy Mou, Board Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of CORXEL. "We are pleased with the purchase agreement with Everest Medicines，and are confident that Everest, with its deep expertise in cardiovascular therapeutics and strong commercialization capabilities, is the ideal partner to successfully bring etripamil nasal spray to clinical practice and benefit patients in China. This agreement also allows CORXEL to further focus its resources on advancing the global development of its core pipeline."

The NDA for etripamil nasal spray was accepted by the NMPA based on data from the pivotal global Phase 3 RAPID study and the China Phase 3 JX02002 study. Both trials met their primary endpoints. In the JX02002 study, a greater number of patients receiving etripamil achieved the conversion to sinus rate within 30 minutes, compared with placebo (hazard ratio [HR] = 3.02; p=0.0005). Overall, the treatment emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were comparable between the etripamil and placebo groups. Notably, no serious adverse events (SAEs) were reported within 24 hours of etripamil administration in either Phase 3 trial. 

The FDA approval of CARDAMYST was supported by a robust clinical program that included safety data from more than 1,800 participants across more than 2,000 PSVT episodes. This included the Phase 3 RAPID trial, a global, randomized, double-blind comparison of etripamil versus placebo, published in The Lancet in 2023. The RAPID trial achieved its primary endpoint, with 64% of participants who self-administered etripamil (N=99) converting from supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) to sinus rhythm within 30 minutes compared with 31% on placebo (N=85) (HR = 2.62; p<0.001). The median time to conversion was 17 minutes (95% CI: 13.4, 26.5) for etripamil versus 54 minutes (95% CI: 38.7, 87.3) for placebo. The most common adverse events (≥5%) were generally mild-to-moderate and transient in nature, including local-site nasal discomfort, nasal congestion, rhinorrhea, throat irritation, and epistaxis. Fewer than 2% of participants discontinued therapy due to adverse events. 

Etripamil nasal spray is also under clinical development for AFib-RVR. In the randomized, controlled Phase 2 ReVeRA study, etripamil demonstrated rapid and significant reduction in ventricular rate in patients with AFib‑RVR, achieving its primary endpoint. A greater number of patients receiving etripamil achieved a ventricular rate of less than 100 bpm (58.3%) than those receiving placebo (4%). The safety profile was consistent with previous studies.

About CARDAMYST™（etripamil) Nasal Spray

Etripamil is a novel calcium channel blocker developed by Milestone Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: MIST). It is designed as a rapid-response therapy for episodic cardiovascular conditions. As a self-administered nasal spray, etripamil has the potential to shift treatment from emergency department-based care to a patient-managed setting. In May 2021, JIXING (now CORXEL) and Milestone entered into an exclusive license agreement for the development and commercialization of investigational drug etripamil for PSVT and other cardiovascular indications in Greater China ("Milestone License Agreement").  

About Everest Medicines

Everest Medicines is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing, manufacturing and commercializing innovative pharmaceutical products that address critical unmet medical needs for patients in global markets. The management team of Everest Medicines has deep expertise and an extensive track record both in China and with leading global pharmaceutical companies.

The Company's therapeutic areas of focus include autoimmune, ophthalmology, critical care, and CKM (cardiovascular, kidney, and metabolic) diseases. Everest Medicines has developed a fully integrated commercialization platform that combines omnichannel commercial capabilities with end-to-end product lifecycle management. Leveraging its proprietary mRNA platform, the Company is advancing its existing pipeline, including mRNA in vivo CAR-T and mRNA cancer vaccines, while selectively expanding into additional high-value therapeutic areas with blockbuster potential, and accelerating its global expansion. For more information, please visit the Company's website: www.everestmedicines.com.

About CORXEL

CORXEL is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing innovative therapies for patients with cardiometabolic conditions around the world. CORXEL is led by an experienced management team that has a strong track record of identifying, in-licensing and developing attractive clinical product candidates directed at validated targets with proven mechanisms of action (MoAs). CORXEL's diverse portfolio of clinical-stage product candidates has the potential to redefine treatment standards and address key limitations of current therapies for multiple cardiometabolic indications. CORXEL is developing selective small molecule compounds across the cardiometabolic spectrum with the lead product candidate CX11, an oral small molecule GLP-1 RA under clinical development for obesity and overweight conditions and T2DM, JX10, a thrombolytic and anti-inflammatory agent for acute ischemic stroke and CX12, an oral small molecule amylin RA under pre-clinical development. CORXEL also has additional small molecule programs in development targeting validated obesity targets. 

For further information about CORXEL, please visit www.corxelbio.com 

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may make statements that constitute forward-looking statements, including descriptions regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company or its officers with respect to the business operations and financial condition of the Company, which can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "confident" and similar statements. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, or other factors, some of which are beyond the control of the Company and are unforeseeable. Therefore, the actual results may differ from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors and assumptions, such as future changes and developments in our business, competitive environment, political, economic, legal and social conditions. The Company or any of its affiliates, directors, officers, advisors or representatives has no obligation and does not undertake to revise forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or circumstances after the date of this news release, except as required by law.

Source: Everest Medicines Related Stocks: HongKong:1952