Pharmaceutical Bio Venture Industry Shows 'Rising Expectations' for Government Innovation Ecosystem Development Plan

The pharmaceutical bio-venture industry expressed optimism about the government's plans to create an innovative ecosystem.

AI new drug development image. Provided by Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association

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On the 16th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that it held a 'Pharmaceutical Bio-Venture Innovation Ecosystem Creation Meeting' at the Four Seasons Hotel in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

Hosted by Minister Oh Young-joo of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, this meeting was organized to share the 'Pharmaceutical Bio-Venture Innovation Ecosystem Creation Plan' announced at the previous day's Ministerial Meeting on Strengthening Industrial Competitiveness with the industry and to listen to voices from the field. The government’s plan includes increasing the supply of venture capital for bio-ventures and continuously expanding funding for new drug development. Key players in the bio ecosystem, including bio-ventures, venture capitalists (VCs), pharmaceutical companies, and academia, attended the meeting.

Ha Kyung-sik, CEO of IM Biologics, said, “The Pharmaceutical Bio-Venture Innovation Ecosystem Creation Plan is expected to become a new stepping stone for the development of the second bio new drug industry in 20 years.” He added, “For successful commercialization, proactive open innovation aimed at global expansion is necessary, and the government needs to provide support that alleviates the risks arising during the open innovation process.”

Park Hyun-sook, CEO of Cellbio, explained, “Since the 'Korea-Japan Bio Entrepreneurs Roundtable' hosted by Minister Oh last May, there have been tangible achievements through cooperation with Japan.” She further stated, “I agree with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ global support direction, which focuses on transplanting technology to other environments and fostering growth through collaboration, escaping the difficult domestic investment and regulatory environment.”

Lee Jae-guk, Vice Chairman of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association, said, “When promoting cooperation with overseas clusters such as Japan, Europe, and the United States, it is necessary to reach agreements on joint projects to maximize the strengths of the public and private sectors.” He added, “If we minimize trial and error through the industry and association’s existing experience, we can expect tangible results.”

Jung Sang-jeon, professor at Sungkyunkwan University College of Pharmacy, suggested, “It would be good if the government formed a review panel composed of experts to select ventures with high success potential and provide funding support.”

In response, Minister Oh said, “Bio-ventures take a long time to achieve sales and continuously invest in research costs, resulting in a very poor financial condition. We are well aware of the difficulties faced by early-stage companies as global bio investment is concentrated in later stages.” He emphasized, “Our bio-ventures have unlimited potential, so the goal of nurturing three pharmaceutical bio unicorns and achieving over 30 trillion won in technology exports over the next three years is fully achievable. We will promptly address urgent issues and spare no support for the growth of bio-ventures.”

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