Pharmaceutical Bio Association Holds 'Meeting with Korean Pharmaceutical Companies' in Switzerland

Strengthening Collaboration with Swiss Big Pharma and Startups

The Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association announced on the 20th that its delegation held networking events and discussed cooperation plans with global big pharma, biotech officials, and local life science experts in Basel, Switzerland, from the 17th to the 19th.

At the "Meeting with Korean Pharmaceutical Companies in Basel" event held on the 17th at the M?venpick Hotel Basel in Switzerland, the delegation from the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association is taking a commemorative photo. (From left) Han-gon Kim, General Manager of Europe at Yuhan Corporation; Jong-deok Park, CEO of I&Therapeutics; Hyun-woo Lee, Head of Global Division at Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association; Jae-jun Lee, Vice President of Ildong Pharmaceutical; Martina Baselronci, Manager. Photo by Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association.

The delegation for this event, aimed at activating global open innovation (GOI) in the domestic pharmaceutical and bio industry, was composed of members from the association's Global Headquarters and representatives from Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s subsidiary I&Therapeutics, Ildong Pharmaceutical, and Yuhan Corporation.

Basel, Switzerland, where the delegation visited, is considered the hub of European global big pharma, hosting over 700 companies and more than 1,000 research institutions. The association also participated in a special showcase event organized by the Basel Investment Agency last October to promote the competitiveness of the domestic pharmaceutical and bio industry and foster cooperation.

The event held on the 17th was themed "Meeting Korean Pharmaceutical Companies in Basel." Approximately 120 people attended, including representatives from big pharma such as Swiss Novartis and Roche, as well as local experts.

At the event, Lee Jae-jun, Vice President of Ildong Pharmaceutical, shared the research and development (R&D) ecosystem and achievements built over the past five years and revealed a strategy to actively utilize global partnering to strengthen the new drug pipeline. Park Jong-duk, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical’s subsidiary I&Therapeutics, specializing in new drug development, introduced successful open innovation cases and emphasized that open innovation is essential for continuous pipeline development and R&D enhancement. Kim Han-gon, Head of Yuhan Corporation’s European region, introduced open innovation strategies for expanding the R&D pipeline and achieving success in new drug development, while also announcing plans to collaborate with various European innovation institutions and companies.

Lee Hyun-woo, Head of the Global Headquarters at the Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association, said in his opening remarks, "Korea has risen to world-class status in shipbuilding, semiconductors, and smartphones from a state of having no foundation, and following K-POP and others, it is creating a new Korean wave called 'K-PHARM' in the pharmaceutical and bio sectors. We will soon grow into a global powerhouse in the pharmaceutical and bio fields as well."

A representative from a Swiss pharmaceutical company who participated in the event said, "It was very meaningful to network directly with promising Korean pharmaceutical company representatives through this event," and evaluated it as "an important turning point for partnerships with Korean pharmaceutical companies."

Following this, on the afternoon of the 18th, the association’s delegation held the "Korea-Switzerland Pharmaceutical and Bio Network Night" at a restaurant near Basel, exchanging with domestic pharmaceutical companies and Korean life scientists based in Switzerland. Kim Ju-ha, Chairman of the Korea-Switzerland Bio-Pharma Network (KSBPN), stated, "For domestic pharmaceutical companies to enter Europe, partnerships with local companies and institutions are important, but exchanges with Korean experts actually working locally will also be a great help. We plan to actively support domestic pharmaceutical and bio companies aiming to enter Switzerland and Europe by connecting local networks, providing consultation, and organizing and participating in related events."

Meanwhile, on the 18th and 19th, the association’s delegation visited key institutions of the Basel bio cluster, including the Swiss Innovation Park (SIP) and the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW), engaging with local big pharma, startups, and various life science experts. This ecosystem tour was conducted to support open innovation by providing networking opportunities and business entry consultation under the Basel Launch KPBMA program, signed by the Basel Investment Agency, the association, and participating member companies.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.