This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 4:40 p.m. on Jun. 17, 2026.
Venture capital (VC) Samho Green Investment has been saddled with sizable valuation losses from a mezzanine investment in a radiopharmaceuticals biotech. The investment was aimed at deploying dry powder (idle funds) as the firm pursued its largest fund since inception this year, but it has turned into an "aching finger."
According to the VC industry on the 17th, the assessed value of Samho Green Investment's CellBion convertible preferred shares (CPS) and the 3rd private convertible bonds (CB) totaled about 8.1 billion won based on the closing price that day (18,590 won). In just over two months since the April investment, more than 45% of the principal has evaporated.
Earlier in April, Samho Green Investment participated in CellBion's 50 billion won fundraising carried out through a CPS paid-in capital increase and a CB issuance. Using the "2026 Deep Tech Startup Venture Private Equity Partnership" and the "SGI Almighty Secondary Investment Association," it took responsibility for 30% of the total.
Specifically, Samho Green Investment invested 7.5 billion won in CellBion CPS and 7.5 billion won in CB. The CPS conversion price was set at 32,771 won, with a total of 228,860 shares allocated. The CB conversion price was set at 36,048 won. A premium was applied, reflecting the possibility of redemption claims and the like.
Weakened investor sentiment toward domestic biotech stocks broadly has led to valuation losses. In particular, when CellBion listed on the KOSDAQ in 2024, it put forward its prostate cancer radiopharmaceutical candidate (Lu-177) and presented a 5 billion won sales target for 2025, but due to approval delays, last year's revenue stayed at 1.9 billion won.
CellBion's share price has been on a worsening trajectory. Even through April, when the CPS and CB payments were made, the stock was around the 30,000 won level, but it fell to the 20,000 won level last month and dropped again to the 10,000 won level this month. The current price is even below the CPS floor-adjusted price of 22,940 won.
There is an assessment that Samho Green Investment's dry powder deployment strategy proved toxic. In fact, its CellBion mezzanine investment appears to have come right before the Korea Growth Investment Corporation (K-Growth)'s "securities finance K-Growth Fund" commitment program, which kicked off in earnest in April.
In venture fund commitment programs, investment execution rates generally serve as a plus factor. In particular, for the SGI Almighty Secondary Investment Association that Samho Green Investment used for the CellBion investment, the largest limited partner is Korea Securities Finance, making pre-deployment necessary before attempting the securities finance commitment program.
Some even say Samho Green Investment's CellBion investment has, in effect, turned into a blunder. That is because it was selected as a trustee in the "Challenge League" in the 1st round of the indirect investment segment of the Public Growth Fund commitment program recently, securing 32 billion won and lighting a green light for fundraising.
Samho Green Investment has now begun work to form a new 150 billion won fund. This is the upper limit of the target size that a Challenge League trustee of the Public Growth Fund is allowed to form, and it is said to have already secured a substantial amount of investment. It has effectively been left only with valuation losses on the mezzanine investment.
A VC industry source said, "Samho Green Investment had already invested once in CellBion back in 2018 when it was an unlisted bioventure and had exited after the listing," adding, "Based on the judgment that it knew the company well, the investment carried out with the goal of deploying funds has ended up as a loss."
Meanwhile, Samho Green Investment plans to wait for CellBion's earnings improvement and a rise in corporate value. The view is that commercialization is imminent, as CellBion had already applied for a conditional approval for its core product, the prostate cancer radiopharmaceutical Lu-177, late last year.
A Samho Green Investment official said, "It is not that the CellBion mezzanine investment had no purpose of deploying dry powder, but we executed it because we judged it to be an attractive opportunity," adding, "Since there has been no change in the company's fundamentals, we believe the valuation losses can be recovered going forward."