• Multipass hot rolling refines grain size from 34.3 μm to 8.83 μm and improves microstructure homogeneity in WE43 magnesium alloy.
• Yield strength in the rolling direction increases from 164 MPa to 324 MPa due to fine-grain, second-phase, and texture strengthening.
• Strong basal texture in RD promotes prismatic slip, leading to higher yield strength anisotropy compared to TD.
• Multipass hot rolling is an effective method to enhance strength and formability of WE43 alloy for biomedical applications.