This article first appeared in Digital Edge, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on August 12, 2024 - August 18, 2024

Malaysia’s often overlooked biotechnology sector had a landmark moment at the National Bioeconomy Showcase 2024 last month when Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Chang Lih Kang took to the stage to announce the country’s second unicorn — ALPS Global Holding Bhd.

Unicorns are a rare breed of start-up companies in Malaysia. More often than not, privately held entities that are on the verge of achieving this coveted status — being valued at US$1 billion (RM4.5 billion) and above — find themselves wooed by regional rivals eager to cement their own standing in innovation and technological leadership.

Founded in 2008, ALPS has been a formidable player in the global biotechnology arena. It is slated to list on the Nasdaq in the fourth quarter of this year, with an anticipated enterprise value of about US$1.6 billion.

In an interview with Digital Edge, group CEO and chief research scientist Datuk Seri Dr Tham Seng Kong shares that he founded the company to fulfil his lifelong interest in genomic and cellular research. Little did he dream that his biotechnology firm would one day be recognised as a key player in the local start-up landscape, typically dominated by innovations in fintech, e-commerce and artificial intelligence, to name a few.

Tham’s journey into the world of biotechnology began in an unlikely place: traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). After graduating in 1993 with a degree in medicine from Xiamen University in China, he then pursued integrated Chinese medicine and Western clinical medicine, specialising in oncology, at The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

“Most of my family were actually rubber tappers, but my father was a Chinese medicine physician. That’s why I wanted to take up Chinese medicine for my undergraduate degree,” says Tham, who comes from idyllic Triang, Pahang.

While serving his housemanship in the oncology department, he was confronted with the harsh reality that cancer was often detected late and treatment was prohibitively expensive.

“During my time, there were only 140 beds in the hospital and there were roughly 120 patients daily. Sometimes, in a span of a week, patients would die because their cancer was aggressive or at an advanced stage,” he says, describing a pivotal moment that steered him back to his scientific interests.

Tham envisioned a future where DNA sequencing could accelerate early detection, improving survival rates significantly. “Actually, even then, the medications for cancer were [already quite] advanced,” he recalls.

“But it’s about how we amend the treatments for diagnosing. Normally, we only find out about cancer or tumour growth in an advanced or late stage. This inspired me to want to dive deep into DNA technology.”

The realisation that early diagnosis could drastically improve the survival rate of cancer patients — 95% in the early stage compared to a mere 5% in the advanced stage — became a driving force for Tham. “Because normally, the end stage has a survival rate of only 5%. But [by diagnosing] in the early stage, normally the survival rate is 95%. And with the current technology, sometimes you can achieve 99%. This can happen with precision medicine and diagnostics,” he explains.

Upon returning to Malaysia, Tham did not pursue Western medicine immediately and decided to carry on his father’s legacy as a TCM physician. After a decade of practising TCM, he realised he could do more beyond the practice of medicine. His unwavering belief in the potential of DNA technology in creating medical breakthroughs spurred him to pivot towards cellular research.

“During medical school, I trained in Western medicine and worked as a clinician. My MD (doctor of medicine) focused on oncology and DNA was a significant part of it. That’s why I was very keen on learning and understanding DNA for my PhD thesis,” he says.

Tham graduated with a doctorate in biomedical engineering in 2017, which complemented his research in cancer and anti-ageing cellular therapy.

“Those days, when you graduate from a university overseas, you would need to do your housemanship in Malaysia on top of completing your housemanship in the country you studied. Rather than doing my housemanship in Malaysia, I turned to research. I think my experience as a doctor in China and as a TCM physician has been beneficial in my work with clinicians in this region, including Indonesia, Vietnam and Hong Kong,” says Tham.

He began collaborating with companies doing biomedical research, immersing himself in the cutting-edge developments of the field. This transition marked the beginning of a journey that would ultimately lead to the founding of ALPS three years later.

Today, he works closely with his Swiss and Asian counterparts in advancing human understanding of cellular therapy in cancer research.

But before Tham could focus on breakthroughs in cancer research, he needed to ensure his company was financially stable. To “survive”, as he candidly puts it, ALPS honed in on stem cell therapy — a popular area in biotechnology driven by the fervour around anti-ageing and the quest for immortality. 

“When we started the company in 2008, anti-ageing treatments, specifically stem cell therapy, were popular in this region — not only in Malaysia but also in Hong Kong, Thailand and Indonesia. Many people were seeking treatments in Switzerland and Germany. So, I started conducting a lot of studies in this area and training doctors as well,” he says.

This burgeoning interest in anti-ageing, therapeutics and wellness treatments laid a robust foundation for ALPS’ future growth. “Most of our anti-ageing cellular therapy patients are foreigners, many from Jakarta and China. Local patients make up a small part of our consumer database. Our patients are usually in their fifties or sixties,” says Tham.

“Malaysia is a very good country especially for clinical studies on anti-ageing cellular therapy. We are a multi-racial country. When doctors conduct clinical studies, there is a diverse pool of participants, providing varied data. This is a good country for clinical studies since we have Indians, Chinese, Malays, Arabs and more,” he adds.

One of the important scientific breakthroughs is the discovery of a penetrating tyrosinase inhibitor to reduce melanin production for skin beauty and whitening. Tyrosinase is an enzyme involved in melanin production that affects skin pigmentation. By inhibiting tyrosinase, it is possible to reduce melanin synthesis, leading to lighter skin and reduced age spots. This helps in anti-ageing by promoting a more even skin tone and reducing visible signs of ageing.

The Covid-19 pandemic significantly shifted ALPS’ focus from aesthetics to medical sciences research. As the world grappled with the unprecedented health crisis, the company was among the many labs working on the development of a messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccine.

The urgency of the pandemic and the global collaboration among scientists accelerated the development of mRNA vaccines, which use synthetic mRNA to instruct cells to produce a protein that triggers an immune response. ALPS leveraged its existing infrastructure and scientific expertise to contribute to this groundbreaking effort.

Tham and his team applied their knowledge of cellular processes and therapeutic applications to support the rapid development and testing of mRNA vaccines. But it was not easy to get the funds needed to support their research.

“We applied to the government for funds to develop our mRNA vaccine but we didn’t get the funds. So we put down our own funds and started the research and development (R&D). Only then, during the pandemic, people saw what we could do,” he says.

Since then, ALPS has expanded its research focus to include advanced cell and gene therapy products. Notable areas of research include the use of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells for treating diabetes and lung fibrosis and the development of induced pluripotent stem cells for cardiomyocyte regeneration.

Additionally, the company is exploring natural killer cells for the treatment of solid tumour cancers. It is also involved in the development of mRNA vaccines, targeting personalised anti-cancer vaccines, HPV vaccines and vaccines for the flu and Influenza A and B.

Moreover, ALPS is working on CAR-T cell therapies for lymphoma and leukaemia. CAR-T cell therapies for lymphoma and leukaemia involve modifying a patient’s T cells to express a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) that targets cancer cells. These engineered T cells are then infused back into the patient, where they specifically attack and destroy the cancerous cells, offering a highly personalised and effective treatment.

All these products are either in the early stages of development or being tested in proof-of-concept or preclinical phases.

These advanced research initiatives have contributed to ALPS achieving unicorn status, says Tham. According to a joint statement by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti) and Bioeconomy Corp, the company’s valuation fulfils one of the key goals under the National Biotechnology Policy 2.0, which aims to create three bio-innovation companies with unicorn status by 2030.

“It is true that unicorns are an indicator. But apart from unicorn status, there are also many other factors to identify whether a company is successful or not,” said Chang at the National Bioeconomy Showcase, adding that Mosti and Bioeconomy Corp are also focusing on other start-ups.

ALPS’ ecosystem includes the ALPS Medical Centre, ALPS Wellness Centre and MyGenome Sdn Bhd — a Bionexus-accredited molecular institute specialising in whole genome sequencing and mRNA technologies. It also features Celestialab Sdn Bhd, a current good manufacturing practice-accredited cell manufacturing lab approved for tax incentives. Tham says the wellness centre is ALPS’ main revenue generator. 

According to a CTOS report, ALPS Global has been making losses since it started generating revenue in 2021. Nevertheless, its revenue grew from RM10.8 million in FY2021 to more than RM16 million in FY2023 ended March 31.

ALPS’ anticipated listing on the Nasdaq in 4Q2024 is expected to raise Malaysia’s profile globally and demonstrate the country’s ability to produce high-tech companies capable of competing on a global scale, the minister added.

ALPS, which is going for listing via a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, is looking to raise US$100 million. In a statement in January, the company said it had entered into a definitive merger agreement with Globalink Investment Inc.

“Listing on Bursa or the Singapore Exchange means that ALPS will still be a regional company, but the Nasdaq is a global platform. We chose a global platform because we want to be a global company,” says Tham.

Tham stresses that while Malaysia has achieved significant breakthroughs, the country still has immense potential to scale globally. However, challenges such as a lack of funding or expertise and developing a supportive biotechnology ecosystem remain.

“Funding is often the first priority, but expertise is equally crucial — to identify and leverage the necessary knowledge. This is why we recently partnered with JLand to develop a biovalley hub,” he explains.

To build a robust biotechnology ecosystem, ALPS signed a memorandum of understanding in March with JLand Group Sdn Bhd, the real estate and infrastructure arm of Johor Corp, to establish BioValley in Sedenak, Johor. According to reports, through this partnership, JLand will develop the biotechnology hub in the 7,290-acre Ibrahim Technopolis (IBTEC), while ALPS will serve as the anchor tenant and operator.

BioValley is anticipated to generate an estimated gross development value of RM980 million and will complement IBTEC’s existing data centre campus and its forthcoming smart logistics and manufacturing and artificial intelligence hubs.

“We are looking to fill the gaps to build the bio industry. I think by the end of this year or early next year, [we are looking to develop] the BioValley Hub. Through this, we will be able to fill the gaps in expertise, funding and regulations,” says Tham.

“An entire ecosystem will be built in BioValley. [This collaboration] is important for the future of our country and companies to compete internationally.”

The campus-style biotechnology hub will span 500,000 sq ft and be developed over three progressive phases. Phase 1 will focus on establishing crucial infrastructure, including a vaccine manufacturing plant, cell processing centre and molecular laboratory. Phase 2 will further enhance the ecosystem by nurturing start-up incubators, academic institutions and R&D centres. Phase 3 will culminate in the creation of a vibrant commercial hub alongside residential developments.

The biotechnology hub will offer services such as regenerative and immunotherapy, along with initiatives like a clinical trial centre and a medical tourism hub, solidifying its status as a comprehensive and cutting-edge biotechnology hub.

Through these initiatives, Tham hopes to create a more affordable and equitable healthcare system, ensuring that medicines and medical care are accessible to people from all backgrounds.

“I hope more [biotech] companies can contribute more to society. Access to medicine is an essential human right,” he points out.

“Currently, good medicines and therapies are costly. Of course, we have cheaper prices, thanks to the government’s subsidies for healthcare. But some targeted drugs and cancer medication are not covered by these subsidies — you still need to buy them. These medications are really expensive and I hope in the future, good medicines can be attained by all, and not only the rich.”

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