Shinhan Investment Corp. Recovers Pre-IPO Investment in Albotec

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Shinhan Investment Corp. announced on the 1st that it has recovered its pre-IPO (pre-listing equity investment) funds in Alvotech, a global biosimilar pharmaceutical company.

In October 2020, Shinhan Investment Corp. participated in Alvotech's pre-IPO funding through the Shinhan Healthcare New Technology Investment Association No. 5, worth 10 billion KRW, investing in convertible loans and equity. When Alvotech was listed on the U.S. Nasdaq in June last year, Shinhan Investment Corp. began partial recovery of its investment through on-market sales after 1 year and 8 months. Despite the global stock market plunge, it succeeded in stable recovery and completed the sale of its holdings in January this year with an approximate 30% return. Additionally, the association still holds stock options in the form of rights, so it is expected that additional profits can be secured if the stock price rises.

Alvotech is a global biosimilar pharmaceutical company headquartered in Iceland. It is developing multiple biosimilar pipelines targeting blockbuster drugs ranked within the top 10 worldwide by sales. Since 2022, it has started generating product sales by selling high-concentration Humira biosimilars worldwide and is accelerating clinical trials and sales approvals for follow-up pipelines such as the Stelara biosimilar.

Previously, in 2018, Shinhan Investment Corp. invested approximately 39 billion KRW in Alvotech convertible bonds through an investment trust together with Morgan Stanley and Oaktree, recovering the investment with a 45% return in 2021 after three years. In 2021, it also participated as the lead arranger and major lender in acquisition financing for an M&A deal involving an Alvotech affiliate.

In this way, Shinhan Investment Corp. is leading various linked financial transactions from equity investments through direct coverage of global companies. Demonstrating its role as a leading domestic global equity house, Shinhan Investment Corp. is investing in promising global companies and creating successful cases such as Moloco and Alvotech.