Samyang Biopharm surges on Kospi debut

Shares jump 30% on optimism over specialty biotech portfolio, overseas growth

Samyang Discovery Center in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province (Samyang Holdings)

Samyang Biopharm, a medical devices and biopharmaceutical affiliate of Samyang Group, soared on the Kospi on Monday as it made its debut on Korea’s main bourse after a spin-off from Samyang Holdings.

According to Samyang Biopharm, a total of 7,435,870 shares went public on Kopsi. The listing came after the company had completed the spin-off from Samyang Holdings on Nov. 1. Through a direct listing, Samyang Holdings shareholders received shares of the newly listed biopharmaceutical firm in proportion to their stake without undergoing a separate subscription process.

Samyang Biopharm’s stock jumped to hit the upper limit of a 30 percent day-on-day growth as its price reached 30,200 won ($20.46) per share almost immediately after the market opening. It closed the day at the same price.

“With the listing, we are now able to be independently evaluated on our company’s level of technology and potential for growth,” said Kim Kyung-jin, CEO of Samyang Biopharm. “By increasing the firm’s value based on Samyang Biopharm’s competitive edge, we will contribute to improving the valuation of the entire (Samyang Group).”

Samyang Biopharm also noted that the listing has bolstered its trust from foreign partners and investors, while better positioning the company to secure funding for research and development as well as global entry.

Samyang Biopharm said it plans to enhance its corporate value with a portfolio that focuses on specialty, high-performance products such as biodegradable surgical sutures, anticancer therapies and gene delivery platforms.

The company, which developed Korea’s first biodegradable surgical suture in 1993, now holds the biggest share in the global suture market and supplies sutures to over 200 entities in 50 countries.

Samyang Biopharm has developed seven solid tumor drugs and five blood cancer therapies. It recently completed the expansion of a cytotoxic anti-cancer injectable drug production facility in Daejeon with an annual production capacity of 5 million vials. The site is Korea’s sole facility to have acquired good manufacturing practice, or GMP, certificates from Europe and Japan.

The biopharmaceutical company is ramping up R&D efforts to advance its self-developed Selectivity Enabling NanoShell, a drug delivery system that can selectively deliver nucleic acid-based therapeutics such as siRNA and mRNA to specific tissues while minimizing off-target effects.

Samyang Biopharm is also accelerating its entrance into the aesthetic medicine sector, rolling out a biodegradable lifting thread brand, Croquis, and a polycaprolactone-based filler, Lafullen. The latter has been launched in Indonesia and China.