[Edaily Reporter KIM SAE-MI ] On the 14th, in the biotech and healthcare sector, Curiox hit the daily price limit following news that it had secured a “multi-unit” order from a global pharmaceutical company. Meanwhile, Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. sought to allay concerns over an overhang of convertible preferred shares (CPS) but was unable to avoid a fourth consecutive day of declines.

Curiox Rises on News of 500 Million Won Order… “Multi-Unit” Is the Key

According to KG Zeroin MP DOCTOR ( Curiox Biosystems Co., Ltd.(445680)) on the same day, closed at 50,600 won, surging 116,500 won (29.91%) from the previous day. The stock quickly hit the daily price limit early in the session following the company’s announcement of a 500 million won order from a global pharmaceutical company.

That day, Curiox announced in its August IR letter, “We have secured an order worth 510 million won from one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies in the cell and gene therapy sector.” Rather than the order’s value, the market is focusing on the fact that this marks the realization of a “multi-unit” order—where a global client purchases multiple units from the outset—moving beyond the initial stage of introducing a single Curiox unit on a trial basis. The “Pluto HT” units ordered this time have been installed or are scheduled to be installed shortly in two laboratories located in different regions.

The factor that had been weighing on Curiox’s stock price was market concern that actual sales growth was lagging behind expectations. While Curiox has been expanding proof-of-concept (PoC) and equipment evaluations with global pharmaceutical companies and research institutions, actual sales had tended to consist of trial installations of a single unit at a time.

A Curiox official stated, “One of the factors that may have disappointed investors and affected the stock price over the past few months was the perception that news of full-scale sales was not widely known to the market and was being delayed,” adding, “While we previously sold only one unit at a time for testing purposes, we have recently begun to see customers purchasing two or more units.”

In particular, the fact that two multi-unit sales occurred in this quarter alone appears to have raised market expectations. Curiox’s long-term growth strategy is not limited to selling a single unit per laboratory; rather, it involves a structure where, after a single client completes technical validation, equipment adoption spreads to multiple laboratories and production lines within that client’s organization. Therefore, the emergence of customers purchasing multiple units from the outset is likely to have been interpreted as a strong signal by investors.

The presence of numerous potential customers who could lead to additional multi-unit sales is also believed to have fueled these expectations. Curiox stated that since the preliminary results of the NIST-led Interlab Study were released at “CYTO 2026” last June, partnership discussions have accelerated, and some participating institutions are preparing budgets for equipment procurement. A Curiox official hinted, “The fact that we have secured many similar leads also seems to have had a positive effect.”

Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Sets Out to Reassure Investors, but Concerns Over 1.97 Million Shares of Overhang Persist

Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.(226950)Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has recently been undergoing a sharp correction as concerns over the overhang of convertible preferred shares (CPS) have come to the fore. In response, Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has sought to reassure the market by emphasizing that existing CPS investors are prioritizing medium- to long-term growth potential over short-term returns; however, this appears insufficient to fully alleviate market supply-and-demand concerns.

Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s stock price fell as low as 107,900 won during the session, marking a decline of over 4% from the previous day. After the company issued a statement at 1:25 p.m. to address the situation, the intraday decline narrowed, and the stock closed at 112,000 won, down 500 won (0.44%) from the previous day. However, looking at the broader trend, Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s stock price—which stood at 137,800 won as recently as the 10th—has fallen for four consecutive trading days, dropping 18.7% over that period. Notably, on the 12th, the stock plummeted 14% from the previous day’s closing price, closing at 113,500 won.

One factor weighing on the stock price is the imminent arrival of the conversion period for the large-scale CPS issued last year.

Last August, Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. issued 1,979,347 CPS shares worth 115 billion won to domestic and international institutional investors. The conversion price per share was 58,101 won, and the shares were subject to a one-year lock-up period; conversion to common stock will be possible starting on the 29th. Actual conversion requests are expected to be accepted starting on the 31st, the first business day following the lock-up period’s expiration. Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s closing price of 112,000 won on that day was approximately 93% higher than the conversion price. Given that CPS investors have secured substantial unrealized gains, the possibility that they will move to realize those gains in the future has emerged as a supply-and-demand concern.

Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. released a statement today emphasizing the medium- to long-term investment commitment of existing investors, which is interpreted as a move largely driven by awareness of these market concerns.

Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. highlighted that a significant number of institutions participating in the CPS—including KB Investment, AJU IB INVESTMENT CO., LTD., Kiwoom Investment, and IMM Investment—had previously invested in the company. The company also highlighted a statement by Kook Chan-woo, Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of KB Investment, who remarked, “We have higher expectations for the corporate value that Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will create over the medium to long term through the expansion of global partnerships and its platform than we do for a short-term exit.” The report also cited the fact that U.S.-based Weiss Asset Management, which participated in the CPS investment last year, made a follow-on investment in common stock worth approximately 100 billion won last June as evidence of its commitment to long-term investment.

However, some point out that existing investors’ positive assessment of Olix Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s medium- to long-term growth potential is a separate issue from whether they will actually convert their CPS or sell the common stock after conversion. This is because even if an investment firm views a company’s long-term outlook positively, it may still need to recover a portion of its investment due to fund-specific maturity dates, exit schedules, or yield management considerations.

It is also understood that the company has not received any commitments from investors regarding additional lock-up periods or restrictions on sales. Therefore, while it is unlikely that the entire CPS holdings will immediately flood the market after the end of this month, the fact remains that approximately 1.97 million shares remain as potential sellable inventory in the future.

Industry observers also note that it is necessary to distinguish between the investors’ long-term growth expectations—which the company emphasizes—and their actual exit strategies. A biotech industry official pointed out, “It is difficult to definitively determine whether CPS investors will sell in the future based solely on the company’s explanation,” adding, “Even investors who highly value long-term growth potential may dispose of a portion of their holdings for risk management purposes.”