Guo Guangchang: Fosun Steadfastly Focuses on Innovation + Globalization

HONG KONG, May 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The 4th BEYOND International Technology Innovation Expo (BEYOND Expo 2024) commenced with a spectacular opening ceremony on 22 May at the Venetian Theatre in the Venetian Macao. At the opening ceremony, Guo Guangchang, Chairman of Fosun International, said that Fosun will steadfastly take innovation and globalization as the core drivers for its development in the next 30 years, pursuing stable revenue and profit growth. Guo Guangchang also pointed out that cancer can potentially be cured, and Fosun's vision is for humans to be able to live healthily and happily to 121 years old.

Fosun's next 30 years: Focus on the development of "Innovation + Globalization"

This year's BEYOND Opening is themed "What's Next?". Speaking of Fosun's development in the next 30 years, Guo Guangchang said that Fosun will focus on developing industries where it has formed advantages, with innovation and globalization as the core drivers, so as to pursue stable revenue and profit growth. "Firstly, we must steadfastly commit to innovation by working with others and learning from others to achieve innovation. Secondly, we must steadfastly commit to globalization by making good use of global resources and bringing together global talent. In the next 30 years, I am certain that there will be many unexpected events in areas such as geopolitics and technological development, but as long as we learn quicker and evolve quicker than others, we can achieve steady development. This is an entrepreneurial spirit, and Fosun's culture has always been to learn a bit quicker than others," Guo Guangchang said.

Facing the complex and changing global business environment, Guo Guangchang acknowledged that globalization will certainly become increasingly challenging, but it is precisely because of the difficulty that it will become more valuable. Guo Guangchang pointed out, "When facing so many problems, we need to reflect on one thing. Are there too few or too many enterprises with global operational capabilities in China? In fact, China needs to strengthen both its domestic circulation and international circulation. The more enterprises that possess global operational capabilities, the stronger China's economic resilience will be. Enterprises going global is in fact an enhancement of capabilities."

Future development in the health industry: "Cure"

Macao's citizens are no strangers to Fosun. During the pandemic, Comirnaty®, the mRNA COVID-19 vaccine used in Macao SAR was supplied by Fosun Pharma to the Government of Macao SAR. On 11 May, Fosun Kite, a joint venture of Fosun Pharma, and Kiang Wu Hospital in Macao SAR officially opened the first Yi Kai Da CAR-T Cell Therapy Center in Macao SAR. This marks the formal introduction of China's first CAR-T cell therapy product, Yi Kai Da (ejilunsai injection), to Macao SAR, providing a new treatment solution and option for patients with hematological malignancies in the region.

Regarding the future development of the Health industry, Guo Guangchang said, "The word I remember most vividly is 'cure'. In the past, when my team talked about cancer, it really bothered me because they would say we can extend life by three months, and later they would say we can extend life by two years, or at best five years. And everyone knows that even though life is extended, the quality of life is not high due to chemotherapy and other treatments. But now, our CAR-T platform shows that, cancer can potentially be cured. For certain types of cancer, especially the types we are targeting, approximately 50% of the patients who had only a few months of survival can be cured and return home after receiving our treatment for about one week. Fosun's vision is for everyone to be able to live healthily and happily to 121 years old."

Philanthropy development: Commit to "Developing Business for Good"

Regarding philanthropy, Guo Guangchang said Fosun has steadfastly committed to "Developing Business for Good" by using commercial means to make society better. Fosun was founded 31 years ago by several Fudan University alumni. To this day, Fosun remains deeply committed to supporting youth entrepreneurship and innovation. In 2016, Fosun Foundation and Portuguese insurance company Fidelidade jointly launched the Protechting Startup Accelerator Program with the aim of supporting global youth entrepreneurship. This year, the three outstanding teams have also attended BEYOND Expo 2024 to participate in roadshows and exchanges.

Fosun has always attached great importance to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG). Among the public welfare programs, one that Guo Guangchang cares deeply about is the Rural Doctors Program. Since Fosun Foundation's launch of the Rural Doctors Program at the end of 2017, the Rural Doctors Program has covered 78 key rural revitalization counties in 16 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions, sent a total of 371 staff to provide on-site support, supported 25,000 rural doctors and benefited 3 million grassroot families. Guo Guangchang said that Fosun has always been committed to supporting rural doctors, enabling them to care for the elderly and children in rural areas. Fosun hopes to do its best to make society better.

At this year's BEYOND Expo, Fosun Foundation has partnered with its enterprises in the Health ecosystem, namely Shanghai Henlius, Fosun Kite, and Fosun Aitrox, to showcase their achievements in the Healthcare exhibition area. In addition to showcasing the latest scientific research achievements and technological applications, Fosun has also shared how its cutting-edge research and technologies can accelerate the improvement of people's livelihood and health needs, thereby contributing to society. Fosun aims to leverage the expo to more concretely demonstrate its latest achievements in "Public Welfare + Technology Innovation". Fosun has also held a dedicated roadshow and a panel discussion at the Healthcare Summit at the expo centering on its international benchmark project, the "Protechting Startup Accelerator Program" initiated by Fosun Foundation.