Bio USA to be held offline for the first time in 3 years

Large CDMO corporations in Korea set to attend the event

20 companies including Samsung Biologics, Lotte Biologics to promote K-Bio from the 13th

Korea Bio and KOTRA to run a Korea booth…”is receiving continued requests for partnership with Korean companies”

The Bio International Convention (BIO USA),’ which is known as one of the largest global events in the biotechnology industry, is set to be held in San Diego USA from the 13th to the 16th of this month.

 

Twenty or more pharma and bio companies in Korea including Samsung Biologics, Celltrion, SK Pharmteco, and Lotte Biologics are planning to attend this first offline event held in 3 years since 2019.

 

According to industry sources on the 3rd, over 3,000 companies have registered to attend Bio USA online and offline.

 

Bio USA is a global bio event that is being held for the 29th time this year.

 

After 2019's event that was held in Philadelphia, the event was held online for two consecutive years.

 

This year will mark the first event that will be held offline in 3 years.

 

In particular, 20 domestic pharmaceutical companies have expressed their will to physically attend the event.

 

Samsung Biologics, Celltrion, SK Pharmteco, and Lotte Biologics have prepared separate booths to interact with other pharma-bio companies around the world.

 

Also, the Korean booth that will be jointly operated by Korea BIO and KOTRA will make known the names of 16 other domestic companies.

 

One company that is receiving particular interest is Lotte Biologics.

 

Lotte had announced its plan to enter the bio business at the group level.

 

The company acquired BMS’s manufacturing facility which is located in Eastern New York for $160 million (approx.

 

₩200 billion).

 

Also, the company had set the goal to grow Lotte Biologics into one of the Top 10 global CDMO companies by investing ₩2.5 trillion over the next 10 years.

 

The Bio USA is expected to be Lotte Biologics’s official debut in the global market.

 

Lotte Biologics has secured an exclusive booth in the 'Contract Services Zone.’ Based on the manufacturing capability secured with the BMS plant, the company plans to make its name known to pharma and bio companies around the world at the event.

 

Locations of Korean companies/organizations at BIo USA this year

SK Pharmteco plans to participate in the event Yposkesi that it acquired last year.

 

The Korean investment firm SK Holdings acquired the French gene and cell therapy CMO Yposkesi in March last year.

 

The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed under agreement by both parties.

 

In June last year, the company had additionally invited €58 million (approx.

 

₩80 billion ) to build a second plant.

 

The second plant is expected to be completed by 2023 at a 5,000㎡ scale.

 

If completed, the company will own the largest manufacturing capacity in Europe at a 10,000㎡scale.

 

SK had also acquired BMS’s Ireland Swords plant in 2017 and US AMPAC in 2018.

 

In 2019, the company had then established SK Pharmteco as an integrated CMO corporation.

 

Samsung Biologics and Celltrion, regulars at Bio USA had also secured exclusive booths at the event.

 

As the first offline event to be held in three years, the two companies are known to have high expectations for the event.

 

Samsung Biologics’ CEO John Rim is expected to personally attend the event.

 

Samsung Biologics has been recognized for its CMO capability in the global market during the past two years in the prolonged COVID-19 crisis.

 

Samsung Biologics had decided to operate its own booth at Bio USA.

 

Pic: 2019 Bio USA

Other bio companies have also shown high expectations for this year’s event.

 

Vigencell plans to attend this year’s event to have partnering meetings with various global companies.

 

During the conference, it had made plans to have meetings with various companies and promote its ▲ViMedier ™(VM), the world’s first cord blood-derived myeloid suppressor cell therapy, ▲ViRanger ™(VR), the “Off-the-Shelf” allogenic universal T cell gene therapy, and ▲ViTier ™(VT), an antigen-specific killer T cell therapy.

 

Bridge Bio Therapeutics has received an opportunity to introduce its company face-to-face for 13 minutes in front of industry officials at the ‘Company Presentation Theater 3’ on the morning 16th (local time), the last day of the event.

 

The company plans to introduce its main development projects such as its targeted therapy candidates in its anticancer pipeline, 'BBT-176', 'BBT-207,’ as well as its ulcerative colitis treatment candidate 'BBT-401,’ idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis treatment candidate ‘BBT-877.’ Korea Bio and KOTRA which are supporting this year’s event explained that global interest in Korean companies has increased compared to the past.

 

An official from Korea Bio said, “We have been receiving continued requests for partnership with Korean companies.

 

Some have specifically requested to meet with certain companies, and some have asked us for recommendations.” He added, “Overseas companies have been more actively making requests, especially on vaccines or treatments.”