On Thursday, September 5th, the British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca confirmed that a small number of its Chinese employees are currently under investigation by Chinese authorities but refused to provide further details.
According to reports from Bloomberg citing sources familiar with the matter, earlier this summer, a investigation led by the Shenzhen police detained five current and former employees of AstraZeneca. These detained employees, all Chinese nationals, worked in the company’s oncology department selling anticancer drugs.
Sources revealed that one aspect of the investigation is related to the company’s collection of patient data and whether it violated Chinese data privacy laws. It was also mentioned that authorities are looking into whether some personnel were involved in importing a liver cancer drug that has not been approved for sale in mainland China.
Subsequently, The Wall Street Journal also quoted insiders saying that Chinese authorities detained several Chinese AstraZeneca employees around July and summoned dozens of employees from the pharmaceutical company for questioning. It was noted that most of the investigated employees were from the marketing team.
Patients in China often have to wait several years to access new therapies and drugs offered abroad. Many patients seek ways to obtain unapproved drugs from overseas, some of which may involve illegal channels.
Importing and selling unauthorized drugs in China is considered a criminal offense, with offenders facing possible years of imprisonment or even the death penalty.
Revenue from the Chinese region accounts for 13% of AstraZeneca’s total income.
AstraZeneca has also developed a COVID-19 vaccine widely used around the world during the pandemic. The company is headquartered in Cambridge, United Kingdom, and currently employs 90,000 people globally.
The investigations could potentially pose setbacks for AstraZeneca, according to Bloomberg.
A representative from AstraZeneca told the media, “We are aware that a small number of our employees in China are under investigation, and currently, we have no further information to share.”
Beijing recently implemented new Data Security Law and Personal Information Protection Law requiring companies to keep most of the data they collect in China domestically. Some multinational corporations are concerned about violating these laws, which could result in fines and other penalties.
Moreover, foreign companies are increasingly concerned about the safety of their employees in China and the lack of transparency in Chinese authorities’ legal processes, making them susceptible to government investigations with insufficient information. It is well known that Chinese police can arbitrarily detain individuals for months or even years.
In 2023, five local employees of the U.S. due diligence company Mintz Group were detained by Chinese police, and their Beijing office was raided. The police alleged that the company engaged in illegal data collection and ordered them to pay fines. In another case, three employees of the advertising company WPP Plc were arrested in China on suspicion of bribery. Beijing also detained some individuals working for foreign companies on charges of espionage.