Overview

BeOne Medicines, formerly known as BeiGene, Ltd., is a multinational oncology company founded in 2010 by John V. Oyler and Xiaodong Wang. Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the company operates on six continents and in over 45 countries, with a particularly strong presence in the Chinese market. It focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of drugs for cancer treatment. The company's portfolio includes tislelizumab (brand name Tevimbra), a checkpoint inhibitor, and zanubrutinib (brand name Brukinsa), a Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor. Brukinsa became the first cancer drug developed in China to gain U.S. FDA approval in November 2019 and has since become a major revenue driver, crossing the blockbuster threshold in 2023. Tevimbra has received approvals in multiple regions for various indications, including esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and gastric cancer. BeOne Medicines rebranded from BeiGene in 2024, changed its stock ticker to ONC in January 2025, and redomiciled to Basel, Switzerland in May 2025. The company continues to advance a broad pipeline of more than 30 investigational medicines, driven by a mission to transform cancer treatment through innovation and accessibility.

History

BeiGene was founded in 2010 by entrepreneur John V. Oyler and scientist Xiaodong Wang. The company emerged during a period in which China was developing a stronger biotechnology sector and seeking locally originated medicines rather than relying exclusively on imported products. From the beginning, BeiGene presented itself as a research-led biopharmaceutical company with ambitions beyond the domestic market. Its initial development model combined internal discovery with collaborations and licensing. This approach enabled the company to build a pipeline while developing regulatory, clinical, and commercial capabilities in China. Oncology became the center of the portfolio, with programs directed at hematological cancers, solid tumors, immune regulation, DNA-damage repair, and other mechanisms relevant to cancer treatment. The company’s most important early product success was zanubrutinib, an inhibitor of Bruton tyrosine kinase. It was approved in China in 2019 and received U.S. accelerated approval later that year for mantle cell lymphoma. Additional approvals followed in the United States and other markets for diseases including Waldenström macroglobulinemia, marginal zone lymphoma, and chronic lymphocytic leukemia or small lymphocytic lymphoma. The international expansion of Brukinsa demonstrated that a medicine discovered and developed by a China-based company could compete in major Western oncology markets. BeiGene also developed tislelizumab, an anti-PD-1 antibody. The drug became an important part of the company’s China oncology business and was later introduced internationally as Tevimbra. Its development involved regulatory submissions and commercial arrangements in multiple regions. Pamiparib, a PARP inhibitor, represented another internally developed oncology product and received approval in China for selected ovarian and related cancer settings. Partnerships have been a recurring feature of BeiGene’s history. In 2021, Novartis made a strategic investment and obtained rights to commercialize certain BeiGene products in specified markets. The relationship was subsequently adjusted, including Novartis’s return of rights to tislelizumab outside China and the end of certain commercial arrangements. These changes reflected the evolving balance between external partnerships and BeiGene’s growing preference for direct global commercialization. The company expanded its physical and organizational footprint during the 2010s and 2020s. It established research, clinical, regulatory, and commercial operations in China and overseas, and developed manufacturing capabilities for small molecules and biologics. A major facility in New Jersey was opened in 2022 to support biologics manufacturing and clinical research. BeiGene later established Basel as its global headquarters, while Beijing continued to serve as a major center for its China operations. BeiGene completed a series of public-market listings: its American depositary shares began trading on Nasdaq in 2016, it listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2018, and it became one of the first companies to list through the Shanghai Stock Exchange’s Science and Technology Innovation Board in 2021. These listings provided access to capital in multiple markets and reflected the company’s increasingly international identity. In the 2020s, BeiGene broadened its direct commercial presence and continued investing in clinical development, manufacturing, and research. Its strategic challenge has been to maintain growth in China while meeting the regulatory, market-access, manufacturing, and competitive requirements of the United States, Europe, and other regions. The company remains primarily identified with oncology and with the global development of medicines originating from a China-based biotechnology platform.

2023
Tevimbra receives U.S. approval
[6]U.S. FDA: approval of tislelizumab for esophageal cancerfda.gov
The FDA approves tislelizumab, branded Tevimbra in the United States, for a specified esophageal cancer indication.
2022
New Jersey site opens
[15]Shanghai listing and Novartis collaborationbeigene.com
BeiGene opens a large U.S. site supporting biologics manufacturing and clinical research.
2021
Shanghai listing and Novartis collaboration
[15]Shanghai listing and Novartis collaborationbeigene.com
BeiGene lists on the Shanghai Stock Exchange STAR Market and announces a strategic investment and collaboration with Novartis.
2019
Brukinsa receives major regulatory approvals
[4]U.S. FDA: accelerated approval of zanubrutinibfda.gov
Zanubrutinib is approved in China and receives accelerated U.S. approval for mantle cell lymphoma.
2018
Hong Kong listing
[14]Hong Kong listinghkex.com.hk
The company lists on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, expanding its access to Asian capital markets.
2016
Nasdaq listing
[13]Nasdaq listingir.beigene.com
BeiGene begins trading American depositary shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market.
2010
BeiGene is founded
[12]BeiGene is foundedbeigene.com
John V. Oyler and Xiaodong Wang establish BeiGene as a research-oriented biotechnology company focused on developing innovative medicines.

Products and positioning

A globally integrated, oncology-focused biotechnology company with Chinese origins, combining internal discovery, international licensing, clinical development, manufacturing, and direct commercialization.

Small-molecule oncology therapy · 2019
Brukinsa
Brukinsa is the brand name for zanubrutinib, an orally administered Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitor. It is used in several B-cell malignancies, with indications varying by jurisdiction. The product is BeiGene’s most internationally established commercial medicine and has been approved in the United States, China, Europe, and other markets for diseases including mantle cell lymphoma, Waldenström macroglobulinemia, marginal zone lymphoma, and chronic lymphocytic leukemia or small lymphocytic lymphoma.
Immuno-oncology biologic · 2019
Tevimbra
Tevimbra is the international brand for tislelizumab, an anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody. It was developed for a range of solid-tumor indications and has been marketed in China under a different brand name. Regulatory approvals and indications differ by market, including use in selected esophageal, gastric, lung, and other cancers. The product is a central part of BeiGene’s biologics portfolio and its international oncology strategy.
Small-molecule oncology therapy · 2021
Pamiparib
Pamiparib is an orally administered PARP inhibitor developed by BeiGene for cancers involving DNA-damage repair pathways. It received approval in China for selected patients with recurrent ovarian, fallopian-tube, and primary peritoneal cancers associated with deleterious or suspected deleterious germline BRCA mutations after multiple prior treatments. Its commercial and regulatory status is market-specific.
Clinical-stage oncology therapy
BGB-16673
BGB-16673 is an investigational targeted oncology program in BeiGene’s pipeline. It illustrates the company’s continued investment in internally discovered next-generation medicines beyond its marketed hematology and immuno-oncology products. It remains subject to clinical and regulatory evaluation.
Clinical-stage oncology therapy
BGB-11417
BGB-11417 is an investigational BCL2 inhibitor program intended for hematologic malignancies and other oncology applications. The program forms part of BeiGene’s internally developed pipeline and remains dependent on clinical-trial results and regulatory review.

Controversies

U.S. Government Access Agreement
Source

Marketing campaigns

2020Go Further for Patients
Global
BeiGene used the 'Go Further for Patients' theme in corporate communications and patient-oriented initiatives to express its commitment to expanding access to innovative cancer medicines and advancing oncology research.
Outcome. The theme became associated with the company’s global corporate identity and patient-access positioning.
Source

Brand decisions

2023
U.S. launch of TevimbraProduct launch
Background
BeiGene sought to extend the international reach of tislelizumab after its development and commercialization in China and other markets.
Action taken
Following FDA approval, BeiGene introduced Tevimbra for the approved esophageal cancer population in the United States.
Aftermath
The approval added a second major internationally recognized commercial oncology product alongside Brukinsa.
Source
2022
Expansion of international manufacturing and research capacityStrategy
Background
Global commercialization required manufacturing and clinical-development infrastructure outside China.
Action taken
BeiGene opened a major site in New Jersey supporting biologics manufacturing and clinical research.
Aftermath
The site strengthened the company’s North American operating base and its ability to support international development and supply.
Source
2021
Strategic collaboration with NovartisM&A
Background
BeiGene wanted to accelerate international commercialization of its oncology portfolio while using a major global pharmaceutical partner’s regulatory and commercial reach.
Action taken
BeiGene and Novartis announced a strategic collaboration covering rights to Brukinsa and other products in selected markets, together with a Novartis investment in BeiGene.
Aftermath
The collaboration later evolved, including changes to rights and commercialization arrangements as BeiGene expanded its own global commercial organization.
Source
2016
Accessing international capital through a Nasdaq listingStrategy
Background
BeiGene sought capital and visibility for research and international development while still operating from a China-centered biotechnology base.
Action taken
The company listed American depositary shares on Nasdaq.
Aftermath
The listing supported BeiGene’s transformation into a multinational public biotechnology company and was followed by listings in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Source

Recent events

2023
FDA approves Brukinsa for chronic lymphocytic leukemia or small lymphocytic lymphoma[5]U.S. FDA: approval of zanubrutinib for CLL/SLLfda.gov
Product launch · Regulation
The FDA approved zanubrutinib for adults with chronic lymphocytic leukemia or small lymphocytic lymphoma, expanding the medicine's U.S. hematology indications.
2023
FDA approves Tevimbra for unresectable or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma[6]U.S. FDA: approval of tislelizumab for esophageal cancerfda.gov
Product launch · Regulation
The FDA approved tislelizumab, marketed in the United States as Tevimbra, in combination with chemotherapy for a specified first-line esophageal cancer population.
2022
BeiGene opens biologics manufacturing and clinical research site in New Jersey[15]Shanghai listing and Novartis collaborationbeigene.com
Other
The company announced the opening of a major U.S. site intended to support biologics manufacturing, clinical development, and its international operating network.
2021
BeiGene and Novartis announce strategic oncology collaboration[16]百济神州与诺华宣布战略肿瘤合作ir.beigene.com
M&A
BeiGene and Novartis announced a collaboration covering commercial rights for Brukinsa and other BeiGene products in selected markets, while Novartis also agreed to invest in BeiGene.
2019
FDA grants accelerated approval to Brukinsa for mantle cell lymphoma[4]U.S. FDA: accelerated approval of zanubrutinibfda.gov
Product launch · Regulation
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval to zanubrutinib for adults with mantle cell lymphoma who had received at least one prior therapy.

Beigene