Kim Hyun-bin began his journalism career at Arirang TV from 2012 to 2017, specializing in defense, foreign affairs and the economy. In 2018, he joined The Korea Times, covering society and business, and is currently responsible for embassy affairs.
Korean bio firms eye US market buoyed by bilateral pacts
President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, shakes hands with U.S. President Joe Biden during a joint press conference held at the Rose Garden of the White House, April 26 (local time). Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hoon
By Kim Hyun-bin
By Kim Hyun-bin
Korean bio and pharmaceutical firms are seeking to expand into the U.S. market after the governments of the two countries agreed to expand cooperation in those sectors. The two governments signed 23 MOUs in the bio sector during President Yoon Suk Yeol's state visit to the U.S. last month.
The agreements cover cooperation in research and development (R&D), as well as medical devices and digital health. As a result, there is growing optimism of increased momentum in efforts by domestic pharmaceutical and bio companies to enter the U.S.
Industry officials believe the recent MOUs are encouraging signs that the current administration recognizes bio as a major industry and a large number of bio-healthcare companies were able join the presidential delegation to the U.S.
Daewoong Pharmaceutical signed a technology export contract for new drug candidates worth about 640 billion won ($481.9 million) with Vitalli Bio, a subsidiary of Aditum Bio, a U.S. biotechnology investment company.
EuBiologics signed an agreement with a U.S. bio company to supply raw materials for vaccine, while Olix signed an MOU for joint research and development of RNAi therapeutics. Welt, which recently developed “WELT-I,” an insomnia treatment device that became the second digital treatment device to receive government approval in Korea, also agreed to cooperate with Northeastern University in joint research and development and clinical trials.
Meanwhile, on the occasion of Yoon's visit to the U.S., Minister of Food and Drug Safety Oh Yu-kyoung discussed ways to cooperate in the digital health field with Robert Califf, head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in Washington, D.C., and agreed to cooperate in the development of medical products using artificial intelligence.
"It is meaningful to preemptively prepare regulations for new technology products through multilateral cooperation with foreign regulatory agencies and to lay the foundation for Korea's regulations to become the standard for global regulations," the Korea Research-based Pharma Industry Association (KRPIA) said.