"Ildong Pharmaceutical's R&D Dedicated Subsidiary 'Unovia' Spin-off Plan Approved"

Ildong Pharmaceutical held an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on the 5th and announced that it approved the original plan to establish ‘Unovia,’ a dedicated research and development (R&D) subsidiary through a physical division.

According to the approved division plan, Unovia will be newly launched as of the 1st of next month. It plans to continue its business activities based on the major R&D assets and new drug pipelines previously held by Ildong Pharmaceutical.

The inaugural co-CEOs of Unovia will be President Seo Jin-sik (former Chief Operating Officer of Ildong Pharmaceutical) and President Choi Sung-gu (former Head of R&D Division at Ildong Pharmaceutical).

Going forward, Unovia plans to focus on its core business of new drug R&D from an independent position, while simultaneously engaging in activities to establish a sustainable virtuous cycle R&D system, including operating funds and investment attraction, open innovation, and license-out. Unovia also intends to accelerate the expansion of its pipeline through clinical development and license-out promotion of gastrointestinal treatment candidate substances inherited from Ildong Pharmaceutical, as well as the discovery of new substances and technologies.

Yoon Woong-seop, CEO of Ildong Pharmaceutical, emphasized, “With this corporate division, Ildong Pharmaceutical will be able to improve financial soundness and promote business growth through expanded reinvestment, while the newly established Unovia will enhance its expertise and independence, facilitating early achievement of results related to new drug development and securing investment partners.”

Meanwhile, at the extraordinary general meeting held that day, the agenda to appoint Lee Jae-jun, Chief Operating Officer of Ildong Pharmaceutical, and Shin Ah-jung, Head of Legal Affairs at Ildong Holdings, as new inside directors of Ildong Pharmaceutical’s board was also approved as proposed.