Biocon Limited has signed a licence agreement with Janssen Sciences Ireland that clears the way to commercialise Yesintek, its proposed biosimilar to Stelara (ustekinumab), in nine additional markets with immediate effect, the company told the stock exchanges on Monday.
The Bengaluru-based pharmaceutical company will now be able to sell the medicine in Australia, Brazil, China, Hong Kong, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, South Korea and Kazakhstan, effective immediately.
The deal adds to Biocon’s earlier settlements with Janssen, which fixed market entry dates for Yesintek in the United States, and in Europe, the UK, Canada and Japan. Together, the agreements now give the biotech access to most major ustekinumab markets.
Stelara, the reference brand owned by Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen unit, had worldwide sales of $6.08 billion in 2025, according to J&J’s reported figures. Biosimilar competition has been eroding the franchise as patents lapse across regions.
Biocon said the additional rights would let it offer “an affordable and effective treatment option” for patients with autoimmune diseases in these markets. Yesintek is a human interleukin-12 and -23 antagonist, approved for Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
The company cautioned that product launches in each country or region remain subject to regulatory approval. The statement did not disclose financial terms, specific launch dates for the new markets, or the status of regulatory filings in them.