À̹ÌÁö È®´ë [Photo by SK Biopharmaceuticals]
Unlike the blockbuster IPO of SK Biopharmaceuticals, debuts by smaller bio names had been mostly humble, causing others to delay going public this year.
The mixed market response shows uncertainty in terms of profitability of Korean biotech firms despite the rising popularity of Korean technology to fight COVID-19 around the world, said a market watcher.
In vitro diagnostic company Gencurix lost 13.75 percent from its opening price on its first trade on the Kosdaq two weeks ago and still underperforms its IPO price. Gencurix has earned fame for the development of a cancer prognosis prediction kit that allows doctors to determine chemotherapy for breast cancer patients.
SCM Lifescience, a high-purity stem cell biotech, saw its stock jump 22.37 percent on its IPO day on June 17, but since has skidded.
NovMetaPharma, a company specialized in metabolic disease treatment, passed a preliminary review for Kosdaq listing early this year, but postponed its IPO in April due to weak investor sentiment amid the COVID-19 pandemic. NovMetaPharma is preparing a phase 3 trial of a type 2 diabetes treatment in the United States, while working to develop treatments for obesity, kidney disease, and Alzheimer`s disease.
À̹ÌÁö È®´ë TCM Biosciences, an in-vitro diagnostic device company, dropped its IPO plan last February due to increasing market volatility and concerns over corporate valuation. TCM Biosciences has developed a patch-type diagnostic kit for cervical cancer. It is also exporting a COVID-19 testing kit.
Meanwhile, buoyed by mega hit of SK Biopharm that has been trading at its daily ceiling for the third trading session since debut last Thursday, SK Group plans to proceed with IPOs of other bio units.
Others include vaccine developer SK Bioscience under SK Chemicals and blood product maker SK Plasma under SK Discovery and contract manufacturing organization SK Pharmteco under SK Holdings.
By Kim Byung-ho, Seo Jin-woo and Minu Kim
[¨Ï Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]