A string of successful initial public offerings by Korean biotech companies this year reflects a shift toward firms with proven revenue and technology licensing track records seeking KOSDAQ listings.
Companies that have secured trillion-won-scale technology transfer contracts are now entering the stock market, fueling the IPO boom in the biotech sector. Analysts note that firms with strong R&D capabilities and expandable drug pipelines are seeing sharp post-listing stock gains, further driving IPO momentum.
According to the Korea Exchange, Kanaph Therapeutics recorded an institutional investor subscription ratio of 962.1-to-1, while IM Biologics posted 839.2-to-1 in book-building processes conducted this year.
Both companies share a common trait: technology licensing deals worth approximately 1 trillion won. Kanaph Therapeutics, a human genome-based innovative drug developer, has accumulated licensing deals worth about 774.8 billion won across bispecific antibodies and antibody-drug conjugates. IM Biologics signed a technology transfer contract worth approximately 1.8 trillion won with Navigator Medicine last year.
This pattern mirrors AimedBio and RGnomics, which listed late last year and now rank among KOSDAQ's top market capitalizations. AimedBio signed a 1.4 trillion won licensing deal with Boehringer Ingelheim, while RGnomics secured a 910 billion won contract with Eli Lilly.
Reflecting these achievements, AimedBio closed at 65,200 won on the 11th—up 493% from its IPO price of 11,000 won. RGnomics reached 167,500 won, a 200% gain from its 22,500 won offering price. AimedBio currently ranks 16th and RGnomics 47th by KOSDAQ market capitalization.
All biotech companies that entered KOSDAQ since December last year finalized their offering prices at the top of their indicated ranges. Opening prices versus IPO prices showed strong gains: AimedBio (+300%), Quad Medicine (+59.67%), Acryl (+135.38%), RGnomics (+300%), and Revsmed (+20%). Quad Medicine, Acryl, and Revsmed have revenue bases in medical devices or medical AI software.
Industry observers say the sector is advancing as biotech firms secure funding based on concrete results rather than speculative expectations about drug development.
Expectations are rising for biotech companies preparing to go public. Ingenia Therapeutics, a Boston-based biotech firm, filed for a KOSDAQ preliminary listing review on January 30. The company develops treatments for ocular retinal diseases and glaucoma. Its ocular disease treatment IGT-427 was licensed to a global pharmaceutical company in 2022 for up to 1 trillion won.
Adel, which develops neurodegenerative disease treatments, is also considered a major IPO candidate this year. Founded in 2016 by Professor Yoon Seung-yong of Asan Medical Center's Brain Science Department at University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Adel licensed its Alzheimer's drug candidate ADEL-Y01 to Sanofi last year for approximately 1.5 trillion won. The non-refundable upfront payment alone reached $80 million (about 118 billion won)—the highest upfront-to-total-value ratio (7.7%) among Korean pharmaceutical and biotech licensing deals signed last year. Adel is currently conducting pre-IPO fundraising and preparing for a technology evaluation for a special tech-based listing next month.
The Lee Jae-myung administration's "KOSDAQ stimulus policy" is also cited as a tailwind for the biotech market. Lee Dal-mi, a researcher at Sangsangin Securities, said, "The government policy changing investment guidelines to allow pension funds and public funds to invest in KOSDAQ will positively impact biotech stock prices." She added, "The biotech sector accounts for 33.4% of KOSDAQ by market cap—the highest share—making it the biggest beneficiary of KOSDAQ activation policies."
A biotech industry official said, "Korean biotech companies faced funding difficulties after 2022 due to conservative investment from venture capital, with many withdrawing IPO plans." The official added, "But recently, companies with concrete track records are pursuing listings, improving the funding environment for biotech firms."