This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 2:21 p.m. on Jun. 23, 2026.
Financial investors (FIs) who bet on the biotech Adel have seen a green light for recovering their investments. Adel earned "A" and "BBB" in its second attempt at a technology evaluation, meeting the requirements for a KOSDAQ market tech track listing. Adel plans to immediately kick off the initial public offering (IPO) process next month, aiming to list within the year.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 23rd, Adel plans to file a preliminary listing review with the KOSDAQ Market Division of the Korea Exchange (KRX) as early as next month. The company pushed once for a KOSDAQ market tech track listing in the second half of last year, but about eight months have passed since the effort fell through after it received BBB and BBB in the technology evaluation.
The tech track listing, introduced in 2005, is a system that allows a company to pursue a KOSDAQ market listing even if it falls short of financial performance requirements, provided its technology is recognized by professional evaluators designated by the Korea Exchange (KRX). However, the company must receive at least A and BBB from two evaluation agencies.
Previously, Adel received only a BBB grade, meaning "average-level technology affected by market environment changes." The biotech, which develops dementia treatments and launched in 2016, unveiled the antibody therapy "ADEL-Y01," targeting the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease, but fell short in demonstrating commercial viability due to a lack of technology licensing.
The mood reversed quickly. In December last year, the company struck a technology licensing deal with global big pharma Sanofi. Sanofi, the licensee for ADEL-Y01's development and commercialization, reportedly paid $80 million just as an upfront payment. The total value of the technology transfer contract was said to be $1.04 billion.
The likelihood of FIs recovering their investments also increased. Starting with a Series A round in 2018, Adel's third year since founding, the company has raised more than 68 billion won to date, and it reportedly included a refixing clause in the fundraising process to adjust the conversion price downward if it failed to meet the tech track listing criteria.
In April, it also raised a 49 billion won pre-IPO (equity investment before listing) round. At the time, in addition to existing FIs such as Stonebridge Ventures, Yuanta Investment, STIC Ventures, and Smilegate Investment, new FIs including Korea Investment Partners, Samsung Venture Investment, and Timefolio Asset Management participated.
FIs were said to expect returns of more than 1.5 times based on the pre-IPO investment price. That is because Adel is reportedly targeting a post-listing market capitalization of more than 550 billion won. The pre-IPO corporate value was previously assessed at about 400 billion won on a post-money basis.
The recent weakening of investor sentiment toward biotech stocks is seen as a burden. With an earnings-driven rally centered on semiconductor stocks, investor interest has cooled toward pharmaceutical and biotech companies reliant on research and development (R&D) visions. As of the previous day, the KRX Healthcare Index stood at 3,952.83, down sharply from early this year when it had topped the 5,000 level.
A source in the securities industry said, "Given the clear milestone of the technology transfer to Sanofi, the company is expected to clear the Korea Exchange (KRX) preliminary listing review threshold without much difficulty," adding, "Although the higher bar for listings has reduced the number of new listings, the string of strong debuts on listing day is an encouraging sign."