DongKoo Bio&Pharma said on the 10th that it signed a contract to acquire 1 billion won worth of the convertible bonds (CB) issued by Genome & Company.
The CB totaled 27 billion won, with multiple institutional investors participating, including DongKoo Bio&Pharma. DongKoo Bio&Pharma said it decided on the additional investment because it highly values Genome & Company's shift in research and development strategy and its mid- to long-term growth potential.
The company previously invested about 3 billion won in Genome & Company in 2020 and later purchased about 500 million won worth of equity in the market, bringing its total investment to about 3.5 billion won to date.
Founded in 2015, Genome & Company listed on the KOSDAQ in 2020. It drew attention by entering clinical trials for a microbiome-based immuno-oncology therapy for the first time in Korea. It also confirmed significance in a phase 2 trial in Korea for the combination therapy of the anticancer Microbiome Therapeutic candidate "GEN-01" and the immuno-oncology drug "Bavencio (avelumab)" from Merck and Pfizer.
However, the company decided not to pursue entry into a phase 3 trial. A phase 3 trial would require expenses of several tens of billions of won, but it judged marketability and commercialization potential to be uncertain. The microbiome contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) business, which once accounted for about 80% of revenue, is also being wound down.
Instead, Genome & Company is focusing its capabilities on developing antibody-drug conjugate (ADC)-based anticancer therapies and on its microbiome cosmetics business.
Through its in-house genome analysis-based new drug development platform "GNOCLE," the company has secured multiple new target candidate groups. Its strategy is to develop differentiated ADCs by combining validated linkers and payloads with antibodies developed on this basis, reducing development risk. In fact, it has completed technology transfers to Debiopharm in Switzerland (ADC) and Ellipses Pharma in the United Kingdom (immuno-oncology).
The microbiome cosmetics brand "UIQ" has also entered overseas markets including the United States, Japan, China and Indonesia, becoming a key source of revenue for the company.
Cho Yong-jun, chairman of DongKoo Bio&Pharma, said, "Genome & Company is rapidly transforming into a next-generation antibody and ADC new drug developer based on its ability to discover new targets and its antibody research and development capabilities," adding, "This additional investment was made because we highly value this strategic direction and growth potential."