In the first half of this year, most of the 10 pharmaceutical and bio corporations listed on the KOSDAQ recorded stock prices exceeding their initial public offering prices, maintaining expectations for the bio initial public offering (IPO) market. This is interpreted as a result of recognized technological capabilities amidst global economic uncertainty. In particular, corporations with a history of transferring technology or collaborating with global major pharmaceutical companies are gaining attention as promising candidates for IPOs in the second half.
According to the domestic pharmaceutical and bio industry on the 2nd, companies that have collaborated with major pharmaceutical companies performed particularly well in the first half IPO market. Orum Therapeutics, a corporation that has developed a degradation-antibody conjugate (DAC) technology by fusing antibody-drug conjugates (ADC) and target protein degraders (TPD), transferred a candidate substance for acute myeloid leukemia treatment to Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) of the United States for about 244.2 billion won in 2023. While ADC is a treatment technology that attaches drugs to antibodies for precise delivery to cancer cells, DAC attaches 'protein-degrading' drugs to antibodies to deliver them to cancer cells.
Orum Therapeutics transferred TPD platform technology to Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the United States last year. IntoCell, led by CEO Park Tae-kyo, co-founder of LigaChem Biosciences, is collaborating with Samsung Bioepis on ADC joint research.
Among the corporations preparing for KOSDAQ listing in the second half, many also have collaboration histories with major pharmaceutical companies. Alginomics, a gene therapy development corporation, is a representative example. Founded in 2017, Alginomics' core technology is 'trans-splicing ribozyme' that edits ribonucleic acid (RNA).
RNA copies genetic information from deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and produces proteins involved in all life phenomena. Alginomics has independently developed a gene editing technology that removes RNA that produces erroneous proteins causing diseases by inserting therapeutic RNAs in their place.
The company exported this technology to Eli Lilly in May for a scale of 1.9 trillion won. As part of a technology transfer agreement for the joint development of a hereditary hearing loss treatment, Alginomics will conduct initial research and development (R&D), while Lilly will handle subsequent clinical trials and commercialization. Alginomics is expected to apply for a preliminary listing review after passing the technical evaluation for a technology special listing in June.
AimedBio, a corporation developing ADC drugs, also passed the technical evaluation for a technology special listing last month and has initiated the listing process. The company has entered into a contract to transfer the brain tumor treatment candidate substance 'AMB302' to Biohaven in the United States. AimedBio and China's ZhenQuantum are developing this substance as a treatment for malignant brain tumors and bladder cancer that have mutations in the fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) gene.
The two companies did not disclose specific contract terms or sizes. However, considering that several companies have invested domestically, it is expected that the contract size will be considerable. Samsung C&T, Samsung Biologics, and Samsung Bioepis jointly invested in the 'Samsung Life Science Fund,' and Yuhan Corporation also invested in AimedBio.
G2GBIO submitted a securities registration statement to the Financial Supervisory Service last month and is preparing for a KOSDAQ listing. This company also signed a joint development contract for a peptide-based injectable with Boehringer Ingelheim in January.
G2GBIO has the 'InnoLAMP' technology, a drug delivery technology for sustained-release medications. This technology is noted for its ability to stably deliver ultra-high concentration drugs, potentially extending the duration of effect for obesity treatments.
Neurophet, an artificial intelligence (AI)-based brain imaging analysis corporation, has signed a data sharing contract with Eli Lilly for Alzheimer’s drug development. The work utilizes Lilly's multi-center and multi-racial data to confirm correlations with brain image analysis and clinical variables. As the need for monitoring side effects of Lilly's Alzheimer's drug 'donanemab' has increased recently, Neurophet's brain image reading platform is expected to be helpful.
Donanemab, a polymer substance, does not easily penetrate the blood-brain barrier. By increasing drug concentration, it penetrates to some extent and attacks the abnormal protein aggregate amyloid beta accumulated around blood vessels. Issues such as damage to blood vessel walls causing bleeding or swelling have appeared in 20-30% of patients participating in clinical trials.
Huh Hye-min, a researcher at Kiwoom Securities, noted, 'The first half of this year’s IPO is not just a simple rebound, but a signal that technology-capable corporations are gaining attention again.' He said, 'As technology transfers and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) with global pharmaceutical companies are expected to become more active, the once-frozen investment sentiment is showing signs of recovery.'