Roche Chairman Awarded Shanghai Honorary Citizenship as City Strengthens Global Innovation Standing

Severin Schwan, chairman of Swiss biotechnology giant Roche Group, has been honored as one of this year's two recipients of the "Honorary Citizen of Shanghai" title.

Over the years, Schwan has been deeply committed to China, and especially to Shanghai's development.

Schwan has been a member of the International Business Leaders' Advisory Council (IBLAC) for the Mayor of Shanghai for 16 consecutive years since 2009. He has also served as the chairman of the council since 2024. In this role, he has led the council in providing global perspectives to support Shanghai's growth, while also contributing to the advancement of China's biopharmaceutical sector.

"It's a privilege," Schwan said in an interview with Shanghai Daily during this year's IBLAC conference in Shanghai on Sunday.

He added that the honor was not only personal but also a tribute to Roche and its employees in Shanghai.

Roche Group established its Shanghai office back in 1926. Schwan, who joined the company in 1993, has long maintained a strong focus on China – with particular emphasis on Shanghai. Under his leadership, Roche has continued to expand its two core business divisions in the city: pharmaceuticals and diagnostics.

The company has built a full value chain in China, covering research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization. Key innovation hubs have been established in Shanghai, including the China Innovation Center with a total investment of 863 million yuan (US$121 million), and Roche Accelerator with 300 million yuan.

Recently, Roche announced a 2.04 billion yuan investment to build a new state-of-the-art biologic manufacturing site in Shanghai, a move that will further deepen its pharmaceutical footprint and strengthen local production and supply capabilities.

"This is all about the long-term prospects here in China," said Schwan. "It reflects the growth and the growth potential of China."

Visiting China and Shanghai several times each year, Schwan has witnessed firsthand the city's rise into a global innovation hub, a transformation he credits to two key factors.

The first, he said, is Shanghai's unwavering commitment to innovation, which has been a key driver of its prosperity.

In particular, recent advances in artificial intelligence across various industries have unlocked unprecedented opportunities for businesses operating in China, he added.

Schwan noted that as part of this year's IBLAC side events, he visited several Shanghai-based AI-driven companies at the West Bund the day before, and was particularly impressed by their achievements.

"In China, there is enormous energy and the right environment for such companies to prosper," he said.

He also stressed that Shanghai has developed a highly integrated innovation ecosystem, which encompasses talent, funding, services, data, and infrastructure, and that draws institutions, startups, and both local and global enterprises.

"There are already many large companies, both Chinese and international, benefiting from AI applications," he said.

He added that Roche, as a company, also aims to tap into this potential and will continue its nearly century-long commitment to Shanghai.

Beyond Shanghai's robust innovation ecosystem, the close collaboration between its business community and government is another key driver of the city's success, according to Schwan.

One notable example is IBLAC, which Schwan views as a visionary platform that fosters dialogue and collaboration between global business leaders and the Shanghai government.

In his view, this type of collaboration is especially important amid rising geopolitical tensions. He stressed that initiatives like the China International Import Expo and IBLAC provide critical opportunities for dialogue, mutual understanding, and global collaboration.

"We have seen it again today, here in Shanghai, about this willingness to open up, to collaborate, and to have a dialogue both within the country and internationally," he said.

Founded in 1989, IBLAC is a forward-looking consultative forum that brings together global business leaders annually to offer insights for Shanghai's future development.

Established in 1997, the "Honorary Citizen of Shanghai" is the city's most prestigious recognition for expatriates who have made outstanding contributions to its development. To date, 51 foreigners have been granted this honor, including IBLAC's founding chairman Maurice R. Greenberg, consultant Eoghan McMillan, and L'Oréal Group's chairman Jean-Paul Agon.