Pharmaceutical Industry Establishes Successive R&BD Subsidiaries... Is Yuhan Corporation Joining?

Yuhan Corporation recently announced plans to establish a specialized subsidiary for 'Research and Business Development (R&BD)' called 'New Co' to aggressively pursue innovative new drug development. Attention is focused on whether Yuhan Corporation will join the ranks of major pharmaceutical companies such as Chong Kun Dang and Dong-A Socio Group, which have already established R&BD subsidiaries.

Yuhan Corporation Pushes for Establishment of 'New Co'... "Nothing is Confirmed Yet"

On the 21st, Yuhan Corporation revealed its intention to accelerate global R&BD centered around its U.S. subsidiary, Yuhan USA, during an 'R&D Day' for pharmaceutical and bio analysts and institutional investors. New Co is an abbreviation for 'New Company.'

According to Yuhan Corporation's announcement, New Co is expected to focus on commercialization by receiving innovative new drug candidates (pipeline) from its parent company, including △long-acting allergy treatment 'Resigercept (Project name YH35324·Global Phase 2 ongoing)' △long-acting metabolic dysfunction fatty liver treatment 'YH25724 (preparing for Phase 1)', and chronic kidney disease treatment 'YHC1102 (preclinical)'.

According to industry sources, New Co mentioned on this day differs from Yuhan Corporation's new drug development subsidiary, Immuno-Oncia, in two ways. First, Immuno-Oncia was established in 2016 as a joint venture with Sorrento Therapeutics in the U.S., and Yuhan Corporation became the largest shareholder through additional share purchases. In contrast, New Co is expected to be established independently by Yuhan Corporation. Additionally, while Immuno-Oncia is focused on developing new drug pipelines in the domestic immune oncology field, such as 'IMC-001 (completed Phase 2 in Korea)', New Co is expected to focus on global BD, partnerships, and technology exports.

A Yuhan Corporation official stated, "The establishment of New Co is at a stage where it is being discussed as a possibility in development strategy, and the related concept was briefly mentioned at the event," adding, "It is not yet a situation to discuss specific establishment plans."

The official also mentioned, "It is unclear whether substances like 'YH35324', which are not discovered by Yuhan Corporation but are sourced from other companies, will be transferred to New Co," and stated, "We are preparing strategies for R&D and BD while keeping various possibilities open." YH35324 is known to have been introduced through technology transfer from GIE Innovation.

"Improving Revenue Structure? R&BD Subsidiary Establishment is Not an Option but a Necessity"

Nevertheless, several traditional pharmaceutical companies are adopting strategies to expedite business performance by transferring specific technologies or new drug pipelines and focusing on clinical development or technology exports through new subsidiaries.

For example, Dong-A Socio Group's subsidiary Dong-A ST established Neurobo Pharmaceuticals in 2022 for new drug development in the U.S. Neurobo's name was changed to 'MetaVia' in 2024, and it is responsible for the commercialization development of obesity treatment 'DA-1726 (global Phase 1 ongoing)' and MASH treatment 'DA-1241 (global Phase 2 ongoing)'. As of the 2025 semi-annual report, the holding company Dong-A Socio Holdings and Dong-A ST hold 39% and 41.31% of MetaVia's shares, respectively.

Chong Kun Dang also established a subsidiary called 'Achella' last October to enhance expertise and efficiency in the R&BD sector. The company explained that this subsidiary operates under the 'NRDO (No Research Development Only)' model, focusing on commercialization development after substance discovery. Accordingly, Achella is concentrating on developing three new drug pipelines: △cholesterol transfer protein (CETP) inhibitor 'CKD-508' △glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 agonist 'CKD-514' △histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6) inhibitor 'CKD-513'.

An industry insider stated, "There have been cases where domestic bio companies' platforms or research or clinical stage pipelines have generated technology exports worth trillions of won, accumulating about 4 to 5 cases each year recently," and analyzed, "Traditional pharmaceutical companies are trying to simplify decision-making structures and enable rapid responses through specialized subsidiaries that focus solely on research assets to improve the existing drug-centered revenue structure."