Founding lieutenants in their 60s who helped grow Celltrion are stepping down or nearing retirement, signaling a generational shift. In business circles, there is a view that the "brother management" system led by Seo Jung-Jin's sons, CEO Seo Jin-seok and Senior Vice Chairman Seo Jun-seok, will gain strength.
According to business circles on the 13th, Celltrion is seen as likely to shift to a sole-CEO system under Seo Jin-seok after 2029. Until now, Vice Chairman Kim Hyung-ki, Vice Chairman Ki Woo-sung, and CEO Seo Jin-seok each served as co-CEOs. Except for the eldest son, CEO Seo, Vice Chairmen Kim and Ki are founding members who joined the company after forging ties with Chairman Seo when he was at Daewoo Motor.
Vice Chairman Kim, who was in charge of global sales, left the company in March for personal reasons. Vice Chairman Ki was reappointed at this year's shareholders meeting and has a term remaining through 2029. Ki said, "I will work hard during my term," but also noted, "Many juniors have grown, and I feel I should hand things over soon." At the time, Chairman Seo hinted that when Vice Chairman Ki retires, the company would naturally transition to a sole-CEO system.
Celltrion recently saw President Yoon Jeong-won, who had served as an adviser to the engineering headquarters, step down as well. A former GC (Green Cross) executive, Yoon joined in 2002 in the early days of the company's founding and served as plant manager in manufacturing. Vice Chairmen Kim and Ki and President Yoon are all in their 60s. In business circles, some say, "The contributors who grew Celltrion, which started with 50 million won in capital, into a global corporations have fulfilled their roles and appear to be leaving the company or considering retirement."
At the same time, attention in business circles is focusing on second-generation owner heirs CEO Seo Jin-seok and Vice Chairman Seo Jun-seok. CEO Seo oversees the management division, while Vice Chairman Seo has served as head of the North America Deputy Minister. Celltrion is delivering sales results for biosimilars (biopharmaceuticals) in the United States and Canada.
The group's governance structure runs from Seo Jung-Jin to Celltrion Holdings to Celltrion. As of the end of last year, Seo held 98.13% equity in Celltrion Holdings. Celltrion Holdings owns 24.44% equity in Celltrion. Seo also holds 4.03% equity in Celltrion. CEO Seo (3,254 shares) and Vice Chairman Seo (0 shares) effectively hold 0% equity in Celltrion.
In business circles, some say there is no clear solution because the inheritance tax would be enormous. A Celltrion official said, "Nothing has been specifically decided yet regarding succession," adding, "Any change in the management system requires board approval."
Celltrion is accelerating new drug development beyond biosimilars as it expands its overseas business. Recently, it acquired 100% equity in the French corporations Giphar, securing about 9,000 local pharmacy sales outlets. Last year, it acquired an Eli Lilly and Company plant in New Jersey, establishing a production base.
Celltrion is developing a next-generation obesity drug and recently began animal testing. It is a quadruple-agonist obesity therapy aimed at reducing muscle loss. If the preclinical results this year are positive, the company plans to enter phase 1 clinical trials next year. In addition, it is developing ADCs (antibody-drug conjugates). By attaching a drug to an antibody to precisely destroy cancer cells, the technology reduces side effects while enhancing therapeutic efficacy.
In the first quarter of this year, Celltrion posted consolidated sales of 1.145 trillion won and operating profit of 321.9 billion won. Those figures rose 36% and 116%, respectively, from a year earlier. A company official said, "The best first-quarter results ever," adding, "We expect to achieve this year's sales target of 5.3 trillion won."