While targeting direct equity acquisitions and joint ventures with Chinese biotech firms, the U.S. Treasury Department proposal does not explicitly prohibit intellectual property licensing deals commonly conducted by Western pharmaceutical companies

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The U.S. Treasury Department proposed adding biotechnology to the COINS Act list of sensitive restricted industries, alongside semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing

Western pharmaceutical companies have invested tens of billions of dollars in Chinese biotechnology companies and licensing agreements to bolster their drug development pipelines

The U.S. Treasury Department cited national security concerns that American investments in Chinese biotech could be used to create biological weapons, develop brain-computer interfaces for surveillance, or cause U.S. supply chain overdependence

On October 22, 2026, the U.S. Treasury Department proposed updated rules for implementing the Comprehensive Outbound Investment National Security (COINS) Act of 2025 to restrict U.S. investment in the Chinese biotechnology sector

The U.S. Treasury Department's proposed COINS Act regulations would require U.S. investors to notify the government regarding certain biotech transactions in China and prohibit others entirely, subjecting violators to civil penalties and divestment

The U.S. Treasury Department's proposed restrictions cover equity interest acquisitions, debt financing, joint ventures, brain-computer interfaces, biomanufacturing equipment, and life sciences tools involving Chinese entities

Raymond James analyst Chris Meekins evaluated the proposed U.S. Treasury rule and stated that intellectual property licensing deals between U.S. pharmaceutical companies and Chinese biotechs will likely remain permissible

The U.S. Treasury Department proposal defines prohibited biotech technologies to include small molecules, polymers, vaccines, blood components, allergenics, cell and gene therapies, and monoclonal antibodies or other recombinant therapeutic proteins

The U.S. Treasury Department stated that its proposed biotech rules seek to balance national security protection against potential countervailing public health risks or harm to U.S. commercial competitiveness

National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology Executive Director Caitlin Frazer called the U.S. Treasury Department's proposal a prudent step toward retaining and regaining American leadership in biotechnology

Biotechnology Innovation Organization CEO John Crowley stated that policies must maintain U.S. biotechnology leadership and warned against an overly broad rule that creates investor uncertainty or weakens American competitiveness

The administration of United States President Donald Trump criticized the World Health Organization's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, accusing the agency of bias toward China

The World Health Organization has rejected accusations from the administration of United States President Donald Trump that the agency was biased toward China

China has announced additional funding for the World Health Organization but remains far from filling the financial gap in WHO funding left by the United States

Diplomats stated that China's planned nomination of Song Li was a clear sign that Beijing wanted to expand its influence and fill a void at the World Health Organization left by the United States

Key patent protections for Sanofi and Regeneron's drug Dupixent are set to expire in 2031.

Western biopharma companies are seeking new drug candidates in China to offset a patent cliff in the early 2030s, when patents on top-selling drugs are set to expire

The European Union rejected parts of the United Nations pandemic declaration due to explicit red lines regarding intellectual property protections, asserting that technology transfers must remain voluntary and mutually agreed upon.

Under updated European Union pharmaceutical rules, a company must launch a new medicine within three years if requested by a country or risk losing two years of monopoly rights.

In 2020, Beijing Kunlun Tech sold Grindr to San Vicente Acquisition for $608 million after a US national security panel raised concerns about Chinese government access to US user data