[Edaily Reporter KIM SAE-MI ] The growth strategy of SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS(326030)—which has independently developed new domestic drugs, established a foothold in the U.S. market, and expanded its global business through partnerships and technology exports—will be presented at the “K-Bio Deal Summit 2026.”
The event will take place at 2:00 p.m. on the 9th of next month at KG Tower in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, under the theme “K-Bio: Solutions for Global Success Through Innovation.” It has been organized to examine the success strategies of companies leading the global market and to share insights on the growth direction of the domestic bioindustry and investment opportunities. The event is hosted by Edaily and sponsored by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association, the Korea Bio Association, and KIWOOM Securities.
At the event, Shin Hae-in, Head of the Portfolio Division (Executive Vice President) at SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS, will take the stage to present on the topic “Growth Roadmap Based on Innovative Technology Business Cases.” With approximately 30 years of experience in global new drug development and business development (BD), Executive Vice President Shin plans to share methods for maximizing the value of new drugs in the global market, focusing on strategies accumulated during the commercialization processes of “Sunosi” and “Xcopri.”
Among South Korean biotech companies, SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS is one of the few to have directly experienced the entire new drug commercialization process—from the discovery of drug candidates through clinical development to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and local sales. Excofry, an epilepsy treatment, was independently developed by SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS and its U.S. subsidiary, SK BIOSCIENCE; it received FDA approval in 2019 and began direct sales in the U.S. in 2020. In regions such as Europe and Japan, the company adopted a strategy of regional optimization by partnering with local companies. Vice President Shin led the negotiation of a contract worth a total of 1.6 trillion won by designing a customized deal structure for the global expansion of Xcopri.
Sunosi is another success story. SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS reevaluated the potential of a candidate compound it had identified, licensed the technology in the early clinical stages, and then facilitated subsequent development and commercialization through a partner. Sunosi was licensed to Aerial Biopharma in 2011; Jazz Pharmaceuticals subsequently acquired the development and commercialization rights and received U.S. FDA approval in 2019. In essence, rather than sticking to a single commercialization approach, the company has pursued both direct commercialization and licensing out in parallel, depending on the development stage of its assets and market conditions.
SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS is now leveraging the business foundation established through Exkofri to drive its next wave of innovation. While enhancing its existing capabilities in central nervous system (CNS) drug development, the company is expanding its R&D scope into next-generation technologies such as radiopharmaceutical therapeutics (RPT) and targeted protein degradation (TPD). In particular, in the TPD field, SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS secured a foundation for R&D of new anticancer drugs through the acquisition of U.S.-based Proteovant. In this presentation, SK BIOPHARMACEUTICALS plans to outline its growth strategy, which goes beyond simply identifying “good technology” to integrating clinical trials, regulatory approvals, business development, and commercialization to build a global business.
