U.S.-based private equity fund (PEF) manager TA Associates was selected as the preferred bidder to acquire Daewoong Group's bio-regenerative medicine specialist CGBio. IMM Private Equity (IMM PE), a homegrown PEF manager, had been considered the leading contender, but the preferred bidder changed to TA Associates.
On the 6th, the investment banking (IB) industry said TA Associates was recently selected as the preferred bidder to acquire CGBio and has begun due diligence. The acquisition target is a 51% management-control equity stake held by Yoon Jae-seung, chief vision officer (CVO) of Daewoong Pharmaceutical, and others, and both sides aimed to sign a stock purchase agreement as early as next month.
CGBio, which began in 2006, is a Daewoong Group subsidiary that manufactures and sells biomaterial-based artificial tissue substitutes such as bone, skin, and anti-adhesion agents. Its main product is Novosis, a bone graft substitute loaded with bone morphogenetic protein that was the world's second and Korea's first to be developed in 2017, and sales surpassed 200 billion won in 2024.
TA Associates was said to have focused on CGBio's bone graft substitute technology and its already secured sales base. CGBio signed an exclusive commercialization agreement with Johnson & Johnson DePuy Synthes for the North American and Australian markets, reportedly paving the way for entry into the U.S. market.
TA Associates was also said to have agreed to accept acquisition terms that IMM PE, previously selected as the preferred bidder, had balked at. IMM PE had been negotiating since March, but talks broke down late last month as differences remained over detailed terms such as a non-compete.
Meanwhile, TA Associates, headquartered in Boston, is considered a leading global PEF manager with assets under management exceeding $65 billion (about 9.943 trillion won). In 2019, it drew market attention by acquiring milk tea franchise Gong Cha from UCK Partners for 350 billion won.