GC Biopharma's subsidiary GC Biopharma Wellbeing acquired a stake in the private medical beauty corporation 'Inibio' that has been in the botulinum toxin business on the 12th. The acquisition cost is around 40 billion won, and the holding company GC Holdings will also invest some capital to support it.
Botulinum toxin, a cosmetic pharmaceutical that smooths skin wrinkles, is emerging as a cash cow in the pharmaceutical industry. While there are concerns about excessive competition, the potential for growth in both domestic and overseas markets is leading to an increase in companies entering the market, including GC Biopharma, which is well-known for its vaccines and blood products.
◇20 companies competing in the domestic market
Botulinum toxin is a protein extracted from the food poisoning bacterium Clostridium botulinum, which causes muscle paralysis, reduces muscle size, and smooths wrinkles. It is well-known under the brand name 'Botox' from AbbVie in the United States.
The domestic botulinum toxin market is already highly competitive. According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on the 18th, there are currently 20 domestic companies that have received product approval for botulinum toxin. Leading companies such as Daewoong Pharmaceutical, Medytox, and HUGEL dominate the market.
Looking solely at the domestic market, it is already saturated. Nevertheless, the emergence of new corporations entering the market suggests that new demand is developing domestically and that they may also expand into the global market.
Recently, as botulinum toxin products have become mainstream, the demand has expanded not only among middle-aged women, who were the initial primary customers, but also among those in their 20s to 40s and men. Additionally, the usage scope has widened beyond simple skin beauty.
◇Domestic companies targeting overseas markets
The overseas market is also experiencing growth. According to global market research firm Fortune Business Insights, the size of the botulinum toxin market in the United States was $4.74 billion (approximately 6.85 trillion won) last year, and it is projected to grow to $6.68 billion (approximately 9.65 trillion won) by 2030. The Chinese botulinum toxin market is currently $2.5 billion, and it is expected to grow to $8 billion by 2030.
GC Biopharma has also announced that it aims to make China and the United States its key markets as it enters the botulinum toxin market, stating, "We plan to focus on China by 2030 and then on the United States thereafter as we accelerate our global expansion."
Leading companies have already entered overseas markets. Daewoong Pharmaceutical received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its botulinum toxin product Juveau (known as Nabota in Korea) in February 2019 and launched it in May of the same year. Juveau's annual revenue reached 186.4 billion won last year, an increase of 27% compared to the previous year.
HUGEL has made its mark by being the first to enter the U.S., China, and Europe with its botulinum toxin product Retibo (known as Botulax in Korea). After receiving FDA product approval in February last year, it aims for a formal launch in the U.S. in the first half of this year. The company is currently discussing the entry timing and sales marketing strategies with its U.S. local partner Benev.
Medytox is knocking on the door of the U.S. FDA with its liquid-form botulinum toxin MT10109L. It has completed a large-scale global phase 3 clinical trial involving 1,300 patients in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, and is also pushing ahead with clinical trials in Japan.
There are analyses suggesting that the emergence of latecomers, including domestic companies, has begun to shift the landscape of the global botulinum toxin market. Min-yong Eom, a researcher at Shinhan Investment Corporation, noted, "For 20 years, AbbVie has maintained a duopoly in the botulinum toxin market, but in the last three years, rising prices have led consumers to flee, causing growth rates to collapse. If domestic corporations secure price competitiveness and gain recognition and production capacity abroad, rapid growth could be possible."