As this year's technology exception listing evaluation standards have been strengthened, the public offering market around bio and medical device corporations is rapidly being reorganized into a qualitative screening system. Although the number of listed corporations has decreased due to strict reviews of performance and technological strength, public offering sizes and valuations have instead grown for the corporations that passed.
According to the pharmaceutical and bio industry on the 18th, a total of 13 pharmaceutical and bio corporations have been listed on KOSDAQ this year through the technology exception. In addition, Livsmed and Rznomics, seen as the year's biggest names in bio and medical devices, are set to make their market debuts within the year.
◇ 15 technology exception listings in 2025…fewer listings as the bar rises
This year's technology exception listings picked up in Feb. with Orum Therapeutics. In May, Organoid Science, ROKIT Healthcare, ImmuneOncia, and IntoCell went public in succession, followed by GC Genome in Jun., and Neurophet and PROTEINA in Jul. In Aug., G2GBIO and Graphy, and in Nov., Curiosis debuted on KOSDAQ. Among them, Orum Therapeutics, ROKIT Healthcare, ImmuneOncia, PROTEINA, and G2GBIO drew market attention as their market capitalizations posted triple-digit growth rates after listing.
In Dec., large bio corporations listed one after another, further lifting sentiment in the public offering market. Aimed Bio, an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) new drug development corporation, drew strong expectations even before its initial public offering (IPO), and entered the "trillion-won" range in market capitalization right after listing. The stock more than doubled from the offer price, recording the so-called "double," and its current market capitalization has surged to around 4.5 trillion won. QuadMedicine, which listed on the 12th, also rallied strongly, with its stock price rising nearly 80% on the first day.
Overall, there were 15 new technology exception listings this year, three fewer than last year's 18. The industry sees the impact of a tougher review process for technology exception listings.
The technology exception listing system allows corporations that have growth potential and technological strength but are not yet generating revenue to list through a technology evaluation. Introduced in 2005 for the bio sector, corporations that receive a technology evaluation grade above a certain level (A or BBB and above) can apply for a preliminary listing review.
Early this year, financial authorities announced an IPO system reform centered on tightening delisting criteria. As some corporations listed through the technology exception faced crises due to research and development (R&D) failures, funding difficulties, and accounting opacity, the intention was to push for the exit of weak corporations to protect shareholders. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Financial Supervisory Service said the direction is to "provide flexibility to corporations with growth potential, while swiftly cleaning up corporations that undermine market trust."
Although the listing bar has risen, the number of "big-name" corporations has increased. The total market capitalization at the offer price for the 15 listings this year was 4.9222 trillion won, far exceeding last year's 18 listings combined at 3.0345 trillion won.
Financial authorities said the new delisting standards "provide flexibility to corporations with growth potential and swiftly clean up corporations that undermine market trust."
◇ "Big-name" valuations up…year-end "biggest names" Livsmed and Rznomics set to launch
However, the number of "big-name" corporations increased. The total market capitalization at the offer price for the 15 listings this year was 4.9222 trillion won, far exceeding last year's 18 listings combined at 3.0345 trillion won.
The corporation expected to draw the largest inflow of funds among this year's IPOs is medical device maker Livsmed. It is a laparoscopic surgical instrument corporation with multi-joint technology that bends 360 degrees horizontally and vertically, and it is set to list on the 24th. Its expected market capitalization at listing is 1.3564 trillion won, making it the biggest KOSDAQ IPO this year. This will be the first case among technology exception listings to exceed 1 trillion won in corporate value since FADU in 2023.
Rznomics, a corporation developing RNA-based gene therapies, is also scheduled to list that day. In May, it sealed a technology transfer deal worth 1.9 trillion won with Eli Lilly and Company in the United States.
In the securities industry, there is a view that as the bar for technology exception listings has risen, the selection effect has also become more pronounced in the public offering market.
A source at an investment bank (IB) said, "As an environment takes hold that values technological strength and commercialization potential over the number of listings, a structure is forming in which funds are concentrated in the corporations that pass," adding, "Next year as well, technology exception listings are likely to be reorganized around corporations with a certain level of technological strength and pipelines, rather than quantitative expansion."