Sun Piaoyang
Chinese pharmaceutical executive; chairman and controlling shareholder of Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals
| Sun Piaoyang
| |
|---|---|
| Born | 1 September 1958 (Forbes) Huai'an, Jiangsu (Forbes) |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Residence | Lianyungang, Jiangsu (Forbes) |
| Occupation | Pharmaceutical executive |
| Known for | Chairman of Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals |
| Spouse(s) | Zhong Huijuan |
| Education | China Pharmaceutical University (graduated 1982); Nanjing University (doctorate) (Forbes) |
Sun Piaoyang (孙飘扬; born 1958) is a Chinese pharmaceutical executive and chairman of Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals. According to Forbes, he turned the formerly state-led company into one of China's largest producers of anti-infection and cancer medicines.[1] Fierce Pharma reported in 2020 that he controls the company through the Hengrui group, its largest shareholder.[2] His wife, Zhong Huijuan, chairs Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group.[1] On 11 November 2026 the Forbes Real-Time Billionaires list ranked Sun 318th in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$11.1 billion; Forbes lists the source of wealth as pharmaceuticals.[1][3] In the annual World's Billionaires list published in 2026, Forbes had ranked Sun 243rd, at US$12.4 billion.[4]
Career at Hengrui
Sun graduated from China Pharmaceutical University in 1982 and joined Lianyungang Pharmaceutical Factory, the predecessor of Hengrui. He became its head in 1990 and was chairman of Hengrui from 2003 to 2020.[5][1] Forbes says he took the company public in Shanghai in 2000.[1] In January 2020 Sun handed the chairmanship to Zhou Yunshu, who had been Hengrui's president for 17 years. Fierce Pharma reported that Sun stayed on as a director, as head of the board's strategy committee and as chairman of the Hengrui group. It said the group owned almost a quarter of the listed company and that Sun held about 90% of the group.[2] At that time, Fierce Pharma said, Hengrui was trying to shift from off-patent drugs to innovative medicines, as China pushed bulk procurement to cut the prices of off-patent drugs.[2] In July 2021 Zhou resigned for health reasons, and the board asked Sun to act as chairman. The Beijing News noted that Hengrui's share price had fallen 33% between 4 January and 9 July that year.[5] On 4 August 2021 the board formally elected him chairman.[6]
Hong Kong listing and licensing deals
In May 2025 Hengrui completed an H-share global offering and Hong Kong listing worth HK$9.89 billion (about US$1.3 billion). Morgan Stanley, Citi and Huatai International were joint sponsors. Its A-shares remain listed in Shanghai.[7][1] On 28 July 2025 GSK agreed to develop up to 12 medicines with Hengrui. GSK took an exclusive licence, outside mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, to the COPD drug candidate HRS-9821, and options on 11 further programmes. It agreed to pay US$500 million upfront, with possible milestone payments of about US$12 billion if all programmes are taken up and all milestones met.[8] The South China Morning Post put the deal in the context of China's share of global drug licensing deal value, which rose from 1% in 2019 to 28% in 2024.[9]
Family
Sun's wife, Zhong Huijuan, also a billionaire, is chairman and chief executive of Hansoh Pharmaceutical Group, which listed in Hong Kong in 2019. Forbes says their daughter, Sun Yuan, is an executive director of Hansoh.[1]
Wealth history
Forbes has included this entry in its annual World's Billionaires list in 16 of the editions from 2001 to 2026 checked for this profile, starting with 2011. The table gives the rank and estimated net worth in each annual list.[4][1]
| Year | World's Billionaires rank | Net worth (US$ bn) |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 938 | 1.3 |
| 2012 | 1153 | 1.0 |
| 2013 | 1031 | 1.4 |
| 2014 | 973 | 1.9 |
| 2015 | 894 | 2.1 |
| 2016 | 477 | 3.4 |
| 2017 | 402 | 4.3 |
| 2018 | 202 | 7.7 |
| 2019 | 174 | 8.4 |
| 2020 | 105 | 11.8 |
| 2021 | 96 | 18.9 |
| 2022 | 99 | 17.1 |
| 2023 | 190 | 9.7 |
| 2024 | 287 | 8.8 |
| 2025 | 293 | 9.5 |
| 2026 | 243 | 12.4 |
International and political links
This section uses the same ten headings for every profile in this series. Only specific, sourced actions are included; company-level and foundation-level actions are labelled as such. Where nothing was found, the entry reads "No documented involvement found in sources checked."
Israel (investments, operations, donations, contracts, statements)
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Zionist or pro-Israel organisations and lobbying groups
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Jewish communal charities
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Gulf states
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
China
Sun's company, Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals, is based in Lianyungang, Jiangsu, and is listed in Shanghai and Hong Kong.[7][1]
Russia
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
India
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Palestinian or Arab causes
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Home government
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
Other international links
No documented involvement found in sources checked.
See also
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Forbes, Forbes profile record for Sun Piaoyang (Forbes data feed behind forbes.com/profile/sun-piaoyang/) Forbes, live record, read 11 November 2026, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Angus Liu, Hengrui's Sun Piaoyang, China's richest pharma leader, steps down after 30-year run—sort of Fierce Pharma, 17 January 2020, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Forbes, Forbes Real-Time Billionaires data feed Forbes, live; downloaded 11 November 2026 13:04 UTC, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Forbes, Forbes World's Billionaires list data feed, annual editions 2001–2026 (one file per year at this path with the year substituted; all 26 files downloaded and read) Forbes, annual lists; downloaded 20 October 2026, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Wang Kala, 恒瑞医药“换帅”，孙飘扬重新掌舵 (Hengrui changes leader; Sun Piaoyang takes the helm again) 新京报 (Beijing News), July 2021, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine Co., Ltd., 第八届董事会第十次会议决议公告 (Announcement of resolutions of the tenth meeting of the eighth board of directors), No. 临2021-105 中国证券报 (China Securities Journal), 5 August 2021, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, Pillsbury Advises Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. on HK$9.89 Billion H-Shares Global Offering and Hong Kong IPO Pillsbury, May 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ GSK plc, GSK and Hengrui Pharma enter agreements to develop up to 12 innovative medicines across Respiratory, Immunology & Inflammation and Oncology GSK, 28 July 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.
- ↑ Eric Ng, GSK signs US$12.5 billion licence deal with Hengrui as China rises in global pharmaceuticals South China Morning Post, 28 July 2025, accessed 11 November 2026.