Negotiations on Technology Transfer and Domestic and International Rights
Leveraging Strengths of Three Companies to Target Overseas Markets
[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] Genencell announced on the 8th that it will jointly promote the commercialization of the oral COVID-19 treatment ‘ES16001’ with its largest shareholder Sejong Medical and strategic investor (SI) Korea Pharma.
The representatives of the three companies?Genencell, Sejong Medical, and Korea Pharma?signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) at Korea Pharma’s headquarters in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, to cooperate on the development, production, technology transfer, and sales of ‘ES16001’ through a strategic partnership.
The signing ceremony was attended by the representatives and executives of the three companies, Kang Se-chan, the technical management chairman of Genencell and professor at Kyung Hee University (Department of Korean Medicine Biotechnology), the developer of ‘ES16001’, and the research team from Swiss RDP Pharma, Genencell’s global clinical and technology export partner.
‘ES16001’ is a new drug candidate based on a novel material extracted from the leaves of the native Korean plant Dambalsu. Global clinical trials are underway in five countries including South Korea, three European countries, and India. On the 26th of last month, South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety was the first to approve the multinational Phase 2/3 clinical trial plan (IND), and IND applications for the other countries are currently being prepared.
According to the agreement, the three companies will leverage their respective strengths to enter overseas markets. Genencell will prioritize targeting Europe and Southeast Asia, while Sejong Medical plans to pioneer the global market using its existing global network. Korea Pharma will be responsible for regions other than those covered by the two companies, including East Asia and the Middle East, and will also handle pharmaceutical production.
Genencell clarified that the agreement does not imply an exclusive contract for drug production and distribution rights. Lee Sung-ho, co-CEO of Genencell, said, "We are smoothly preparing for the recently approved clinical trials of the COVID-19 treatment," adding, "We will strengthen cooperation with invested companies to create synergy in business development."
Lee Jae-chul, CEO of Sejong Medical, explained, "We plan to support the distribution and sales of the new drug by utilizing our overseas medical device sales network," and added, "Through Genencell’s new drug R&D investment, we will secure future growth engines for the group."
Park Eun-hee, CEO of Korea Pharma, stated, "We have recently completed remote inspections of the European clinical contract research organization and are making thorough preparations to stably supply the commercialized drug worldwide following Genencell’s domestic clinical trial formulations."
Meanwhile, ‘ES16001’, being natural product-based, is expected to enable multi-target treatment capable of responding to variant viruses, with fewer side effects and lower drug prices compared to other oral treatments.
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