CHA Biotech, a Korean biopharmaceutical company with the largest pipeline of stem cell therapies, announced a demerger to create a new entity that focuses on immune cell therapy research.

The new business named CHA Biolab is wholly owned by CHA Biotech, whose focus is on developing and commercializing stem cell therapies.

CHA Biotech shares were down 3.98 percent to close Wednesday at 15,700 won ($14.02).

The demerger will allow the two to conduct more focused research and work in an agile manner, CHA Biotech added.

CHA Biolab also plans to initiate contract manufacturing of cell therapies at a new GMP facility to be completed this year inside CHA Bio Complex in Pangyo, South of Seoul. The new facility will be ready for production next year based on CHA Biotech’s patented GMP technology for cell therapies and operational know-how.

Major target customers for its cell therapy CMO are pharmaceutical companies in Japan which is more generous to the use of stem cells.

"We will cooperate with CHA Biotech to develop a large process system to manufacture natural killer (NK) cells in the immune system, which will be applied to personalized and general medicine,” said an official at CHA Biolab. "Our ambition is to be positioned as a research-oriented company with expertise and efficiency in the development of advanced immune cell therapies through open innovation.”

By Shin Chan-ok and Minu Kim

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