[BioUSA] "World's 2nd Largest Participant" Korea... Growth in Both External and Internal Aspects

BioUSA 2023 Closing
Over 1,000 Koreans Attended, Around 400 Partnering Cases
Increased Domestic and International Interest in Networking Events

The '2023 BIO International Convention (BIO USA)', the world's largest bio and pharmaceutical exhibition, served as an opportunity to reaffirm the status of the Korean bio industry.

People are lining up to enter the Bio International Convention 2023 (BioUSA) held in Boston, USA.
[Photo by Lee Chunhee]

This year's BIO USA, which concluded on the 8th (local time) after a four-day journey at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in the United States, showed clear quantitative growth with a total of 544 domestic companies announcing their participation even before the opening. This represents about a twofold increase compared to last year's BIO USA held in San Diego, where around 250 companies participated.

The actual number of attendees and the resulting number of partnering meetings also surged. According to the Korea Bio Association, approximately 18,000 people attended this year's BIO USA. Among them, more than 1,000 Koreans participated, making Korea the second-largest country in attendance after the host country, the United States, which had about 9,000 attendees.

The number of partnering meetings, which can be seen as seeds of achievements, also increased. At the Korea Pavilion, jointly organized by the Bio Association and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) with 16 participating companies, as well as booths of Samsung Biologics, Celltrion, Lotte Biologics, and ST Pharm, meetings continued to take place. Even companies not participating with booths were seen hurrying through the exhibition hall to meet key figures and schedule partnering meetings.

According to the Bio Association, a total of 394 official partnering meetings were held at this Korea Pavilion alone. This is a 64% increase (154 meetings) compared to the 240 partnering meetings held at last year's BIO USA. Overall, 1,628 companies attended BIO USA, with 5,057 official partnering meetings conducted.

The Samsung Biologics booth set up at the BIO International Convention 2023 (BIO USA), held in Boston, USA from the 5th to the 8th (local time), is bustling with visitors.
[Photo by Lee Chunhee]

Among the companies, Samsung Biologics stood out by setting up the second-largest booth among participants. Key figures such as CEO John Rim, Vice President and Head of Bio Research Institute Namjin Jung, U.S. Sales Executive Kevin Sharp (Senior Director), and Sales Support Center Head James Choi (Vice President) all gathered to focus on securing orders. During BIO USA, Samsung Biologics also announced its success in securing an order worth $411.38 million (approximately 535 billion KRW) from Pfizer, marking the largest single contract in its history.

Celltrion, with Medical Director Seonghyun Kim (Director) attending, held about 200 business meetings, roughly three times more than the previous year, and reported over 600 booth visitors. Lotte Biologics, with U.S. branch head Michael Hausleiden attending, actively engaged in meetings to fill the surplus volume expected to arise from a reduction in orders from Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) starting next year.

Active Domestic and International Bio Exchanges... Over 1,200 Attend Side Events

The side events organized by the government, related organizations, and associations were also vibrant. The 'Korea Bio Innovation Night' held jointly by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Health Industry Development Institute on the 6th, the 'Korea Night Reception' on the 7th, and the 'Korea-Biotech Partnership 2023 (KBTP 2023)' event co-hosted by the Bio Association and KOTRA on the 7th all attracted more attendees than expected, creating a lively atmosphere.

About 330 people participated in the Korea Bio Innovation Night, and over 700 attended the Korea Night Reception. In addition to domestic businesspeople and government and institutional officials participating in BIO USA, local businesspeople and researchers active in the area, as well as local stakeholders interested in the domestic industry, gathered to foster active exchanges. Youngok Kim, Planning Director at the Development Institute, said, "This event was prepared in harmony by pharmaceutical and bio-related organizations to bring together domestic and international stakeholders participating in BIO USA in one place," adding, "We hope it will be a meaningful opportunity to support our companies' entry into the U.S. market."

On the 7th (local time) in Boston, USA, attendees are listening attentively to a dialogue between Professor Robert Langer of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Yongtae Kim, CEO of Mepzen, at the 'Korea Biotech Partnership (KBTP 2023)' event hosted by the Korea Bio Association and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA).
[Photo by Chunhee Lee]

At KBTP 2023, following presentations by promising domestic bio companies such as Standigm, Prestige Biopharma, Fraser Therapeutics, Panoros Bioscience, and Adel, a dialogue took place between world-renowned scholar Professor Robert Langer of MIT and his prot?g? Yongtae Kim, CEO of Mepzen. Professor Langer encouraged, "Challenge platform businesses using platform technologies," and expressed strong support for the Korean government's efforts to create a Korean version of the Boston cluster. Approximately 200 people, including domestic and international bio companies, overseas venture capitalists, the Korean American Society of Pharmaceutical Professionals (KASBP), and domestic and international journalists, attended the event.

Next year's BIO USA will return to San Diego. The U.S. Bio Association (BIO), which hosts BIO USA, announced that the BIO International Convention 2024 will be held in San Diego, the venue of last year’s event, from June 3 to 6 next year.