Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.
GC Wellbeing secures rights to obesity treatment RZL-012 for Korean market
From left, GC Wellbeing CEO Kim Sang-hyun, Future Consulting Group Chairman Kim Hyo-jun and Raziel Therapeutics CEO Alan Blumenfeld pose during the signing ceremony for a strategic partnership agreement in San Diego, Calif., Thursday. Courtesy of GC Wellbeing
By Anna J. Park
Korean health care company GC Wellbeing signed a strategic partnership agreement with U.S.-Israeli biotechnology firm Raziel Therapeutics to commercialize a localized obesity treatment in Korea.
The agreement, finalized Thursday at the BIO International Convention 2026 in San Diego, California — the world's largest biotechnology industry event — grants GC Wellbeing exclusive commercialization rights for RZL-012 in Korea. GC Wellbeing will also participate as both a strategic and financial investor in Raziel Therapeutics.
The two companies said the partnership would combine Raziel's innovative technology with GC Wellbeing's commercialization capabilities to create new growth opportunities in the rapidly expanding medical aesthetics and obesity treatment markets.
The ceremony was attended by Raziel Therapeutics Chairman Philip Shayson and CEO Alan Blumenfeld. GC Wellbeing was represented by CEO Kim Sang-hyun, who reaffirmed the company's commitment to strengthening the strategic partnership.
Kim Hyo-jun, chairman of Future Consulting Group and former chairman of BMW Group Korea, also attended the ceremony. Kim played a pivotal role in identifying the project, coordinating negotiations and establishing the collaborative framework between the two companies.
GC Wellbeing specializes in nutraceuticals and prescription pharmaceuticals. Raziel Therapeutics is aiming a Nasdaq listing in early 2027 and is pursuing merger and acquisition opportunities with leading global GLP-1 pharmaceutical developers by 2028.