Heavyweights reap deals and leads

[Seungkwon Kim, Edaily Reporter] Korea’s biotech industry moved from the sidelines to the spotlight at the 2025 BIO International Convention, which closed here June 19.

More than 20,000 people from upward of 70 countries attended the world’s largest biotech trade show, and Korea held its status as the biggest overseas delegation for the third straight year with about 1300 participants, according to the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization.

Korea Pavilion booth at BIO USA 2025. (Photo by Seung-kwon Kim)

A pavilion jointly run by the industry group and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency stood in a prime spot on the show floor, outshining Japan’s in size. Fifty-one companies showcased technologies spanning contract manufacturing, clinical services, materials and novel drug discovery, generating roughly 450 partnering sessions.

John Crowley, chief executive of the U.S. Biotechnology Innovation Organization, underscored a “solid partnership” between the two associations by visiting the Korean pavilion. Twenty-four Korean companies also pitched on an open stage to woo global partners.

Korean exhibitors rack up wins

Samsung Biologics marked its 13th consecutive BIO USA with a 167-square-meter booth and launched an organoid-based screening service, broadening its role from a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) to a contract research, development and manufacturing organization (CRDMO).

“Annual bookings were 5.4 trillion won last year, and we’ve already secured 3.4 trillion so far this year,” Chief Executive John Rim said. “Business is strong,” he added, pledging to target the top 40 drugmakers as new clients.

Samsung Biologics booth at BIO USA 2025. (Photo by Seung-kwon Kim)

Celltrion held more than 150 meetings to seek partners for antibody-drug conjugates, multispecific antibodies, antibody drugs and peptides. The booth drew more than 1,800 visitors, reflecting keen interest in the company’s push beyond biosimilars.

Lotte Biologics signed a contract with U.S. developer Otimo Pharma to make the investigational antibody Zenkistomic at its Syracuse, New York, campus and forecast three more deals within the year.

SK Biopharmaceuticals operated its first stand-alone booth, squeezing in about 200 meetings.

“BIO USA lets us reintroduce our innovative pipeline and partnership strategy to the world,” business development chief Choi Yoon-jung said. “We’ll use our insights and network to pursue concrete collaborations and raise our profile in the global health-care ecosystem.”

Global pharma turns an eye to Korea

Among major multinationals with solo booths, Lonza pitched a “one-stop CDMO” menu covering mRNA/lipid nanoparticles, viral and cell therapies, and bioconjugates. Sanofi, a conference sponsor, urged would-be partners during a June 17 session to “create miracles in science together,” weeks after agreeing to pay up to $1.9 billion for U.S. immunology assets from Dren Bio.

Exterior view of the BIO USA 2025 exhibition hall. (Photo by Seung-kwon Kim)

Interest in Korean partners is climbing. “Korea is an attractive partner,” a Roche representative said. Hamjan Vogel, Roche’s Asia partnering head, told the Korea BioTech Partnership (KBTP) forum that the country offers “innovative technology and a strong will to collaborate.”

The KBTP event on June 17 drew about 700 attendees, 52 percent from overseas, cementing its status as a global networking venue. National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, in a video message, pledged government support for the industry’s global expansion.

Interior view of the BIO USA 2025 exhibition hall. (Photo by Seung-kwon Kim)

At the same forum, Lee Young-mi, executive vice president of Yuhan Corp., highlighted Korea’s growth potential and shared license-out success stories, stressing that collaboration with global partners is essential.

Sidney Williams, BIO’s longtime exhibits director, called the transformation of the Korean pavilion over two decades “remarkable,” adding that Korean innovators “energized the entire floor.”

Lee Seung-kyu, vice chair of the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization, said the record-size pavilion “proved decisive in linking Korean technologies with foreign partners.”

Next year’s BIO USA will return to San Diego, where organizers plan an even larger unified Korean pavilion to support overseas expansion of domestic biotechs.

김승권 (peace@edaily.co.kr)

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