[Edaily Reporter KIM SAE-MI ] Cha Sang-hoon, founder and CEO of AprilBio Co.,Ltd.(397030), has sold a portion of his shares to IMM, realizing approximately 58.2 billion won in cash. Following AprilBio Co.,Ltd.’s earlier successful fundraising of 346.8 billion won from IMM and TKG Group, the confirmation of the founder’s sale of his existing shares has brought the details of this transaction into sharper focus. The industry assesses that AprilBio Co.,Ltd., which began as a university-based startup in 2013, has reached an inflection point, transitioning from a founder-led structure to a platform biotech company integrated with external capital.
According to the Financial Supervisory Service’s electronic disclosure system, CEO Cha sold 1.77 million shares he held on the 24th of last month in an over-the-counter transaction at 32,890 won per share. The total transaction value was approximately 58.2 billion won. The buyers were IMM Asset Management and IMM Scale-Up Bio Fund No. 1. Under this arrangement, IMM Asset Management acquired 1,062,000 shares, while IMM Scale-Up Bio Fund No. 1 acquired 708,000 shares.
As a result, CEO Cha’s shareholding will decrease from 4,425,000 shares to 2,655,000 shares. His ownership stake will also drop from 18.96% to 11.34%. Considering that AprilBio Co.,Ltd. was founded by CEO Cha as a professor-led startup, this marks the founder’s partial exit approximately 13 years after the company’s founding.
Since the announcement of the sale of existing shares on the 1st, AprilBio Co.,Ltd.’s stock price has fallen day after day. On the 30th of last month, the day before the announcement, AprilBio Co.,Ltd.’s closing price was 40,550 won, but it fell by 1,900 won (4.7%) to 38,650 won on the 1st, followed by a drop to 35,050 won (-9.3%) on the 2nd, and on the 3rd to 32,700 won (-6.7%), marking a total decline of 7,850 won (19.4%) over three trading days.
This deterioration in investor sentiment is believed to have been influenced by the fact that the price at which CEO Cha sold his existing shares fell below both the market price and the issue price of the rights offering. CEO Cha sold his shares at 32,890 won per share, which is approximately 17% lower than the regular session closing price of 39,700 won on the day of the contract. This price is also lower than the 34,620 won issue price for IMM’s common stock rights offering.
Although the transaction of existing shares took place during a management restructuring process, it appears that no separate control premium was applied to the founder’s stake, which seems to have fueled growing dissatisfaction among shareholders. Additionally, the fact that CEO Cha sold a large block of shares at a price below the market value—just as the company is poised to gain momentum from clinical trials and technology transfers in the second half of the year—is cited as another factor that has heightened investor distrust.
However, some view this transaction as more than just the founder’s departure. A biotech industry insider stated, “As is the case with most biotech venture CEOs, even when the valuation of their holdings reaches hundreds of billions of won, they often do not have much actual cash on hand,” adding, “This sale of existing shares can be seen as CEO Cha securing a significant amount of cash for the first time since founding the company.” The explanation is that it is a natural part of the exit process for a founder to cash out a portion of their equity value as the company grows.
This sale of existing shares differs in nature from an investment in new shares flowing into the company. Previously, AprilBio Co.,Ltd. decided on a third-party private placement totaling 346.8 billion won. These funds will be used for the company’s research and development and operating expenses. In contrast, the approximately 58.2 billion won from CEO Cha’s sale of existing shares will be paid directly to him personally.
The market is also paying close attention to the timing of the transaction. AprilBio Co.,Ltd. is a platform company that has already achieved two successful technology exports. APB-A1 and APB-R3, both based on the “SAFA” half-life extension platform, are currently under development through global partners. There were also expectations that significant momentum—such as clinical data and the potential for follow-up technology transfers—would continue starting in the second half of this year. Consequently, some observers have questioned why the change in management control is taking place now.
The biotech industry is noting that this transaction originated from a proposal by external investors rather than being driven by AprilBio Co.,Ltd.’s need for funding. A biotech industry insider stated, “This rights offering and the sale of existing shares did not result from AprilBio Co.,Ltd. proactively pursuing a sale; rather, discussions began after external investors approached the company first,” adding, “In particular, TKG proposed a strategy to develop multiple pipelines simultaneously and offered financial support, which led to a shift in AprilBio Co.,Ltd.’s R&D direction.”
In fact, AprilBio Co.,Ltd. had previously adopted a strategy of sequentially developing high-priority pipelines based on its limited cash reserves, but following this large-scale capital infusion, it has shifted to a strategy of developing multiple pipelines in parallel. Since the value of a platform biotech company is determined more by the number of candidate compounds derived from the platform and its scalability than by a single pipeline, it is interpreted that investors also saw room to utilize AprilBio Co.,Ltd.’s SAFA platform more aggressively.
It is also worth noting that CEO Cha will remain a major shareholder even after the sale of his existing shares. A key point to watch in the future is the extent to which CEO Cha will continue to play a role as CEO and Head of R&D. In the biotech industry, a founder’s leadership carries significance beyond mere shareholding. In particular, since AprilBio Co.,Ltd.’s core assets—the SAFA platform and its pipeline strategy—are closely tied to CEO Cha’s research experience, his continued involvement and role are expected to remain key variables in the company’s valuation.
A biotech industry insider commented, “AprilBio Co.,Ltd. is now at an inflection point, transitioning from a biotech venture that relied on the founder’s personal leadership to a platform biotech company backed by substantial capital,” adding, “This large-scale fundraising should not stop at a mere change in corporate governance but must lead to accelerated development of multiple pipelines and additional technology export achievements.”
◇ Profile of Cha Sang-hoon, CEO of AprilBio Co.,Ltd.
△Born January 18, 1963
△Graduated from the Department of Environmental Science at Kangwon National University
△ Master’s degree in Microbiology, Montana State University, USA
△ Ph.D. in Immunology, University of California, Davis (UC Davis)
△Postdoctoral Researcher, UC Davis School of Medicine
△Visiting Researcher, Emory University, USA
△Appointed as a professor at the College of Biomedical Sciences, Kangwon National University in 1995
△1997–1999: Immunology Advisor at Macrogen, Inc.
△ Founded iG-Therapy in 2000
△2006–2007: Visiting Professor, Department of Pediatrics, National University of Singapore (NUS)
△January 2013: Founded AprilBio Co.,Ltd. as a faculty spin-off and assumed the position of CEO
△July 2022: AprilBio Co.,Ltd. listed on KOSDAQ under the Technology Exemption Scheme
