BioCentury This Week
BioCentury's streaming commentary on biotech industry trends, plus interviews with KOLs.
For three decades, BioCentury has helped biopharma executives and investors make business-critical decisions and build larger networks with peers across the innovation ecosystem.
BioCentury This Week
Ep. 333 - Is This Korea’s Biotech Moment?
Today’s South Korean biotechs have a risk-on mentality, a willingness to partner, and strategies focused on globalization. On a special edition of the BioCentury This Week podcast recorded at Venture Café Cambridge, BioCentury is joined by a quartet of investors and executives with deep knowledge of Korea’s life sciences ecosystem to discuss Korea biotech’s push to globalize and the opportunities in the country for Western companies. The four guests joining BioCentury were Aram Hong, CEO of Korean start-up Apollon; investors Spencer Nam and Debra Peattie; and Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH's Andy Whittle.
The podcast was recorded Nov. 6 on stage at the Venture Café Cambridge during the K-Blockbuster Night hosted by KHIDI, the Korea Health Industry Development Institute. BioCentury analyses discussed during the podcast include one on Asian deals and another on the speed of clinical trials in China. BioCentury returns to Asia early next year for the 5th East-West Summit, March 9-11 in Seoul. This episode of the BioCentury This Week podcast is brought to you by KHIDI.
View Full story: https://www.biocentury.com/article/657558
#KoreaBiotech #Globalization #LifeSciences #BiotechEcosystem #PharmaDeals #ClinicalDevelopment #Innovation #BiotechLeadership
00:01 - Sponsor Message: KHIDI
05:08 - Asia Deals and Korea's Role
09:12 - Boehringer's Perspective
13:51 - Apollon's Journey
17:24 - Building Relationships
23:20 - Investors' View
To submit a question to BioCentury’s editors, email the BioCentury This Week team at podcasts@biocentury.com.
[AI-generated transcript.]
Eric Pierce:BioCentury This Week is brought to you by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute, KHIDI, a public institution under the Ministry of Health and Welfare of the Republic of Korea. Through its K-Blockbuster Global Expansion Program, KHIDI supports Korean biohealth companies entering major innovation hubs like the Boston Bio Cluster by providing office spaces in the Cambridge Innovation Center, and many networking opportunities. Since 2022, KHIDI has supported 43 companies resulting in FDA approvals, licensing deals, and the establishment of an emerging Korean ecosystem in the U.S. We're recording this episode live from K-Blockbuster Night, held in collaboration with Venture Café at CIC Cambridge, featuring nine
K-Blockbuster companies:Apollon, Huan, USA, Yuhan USA, Dong-A, Intek Scientific, C&R Research U.S., VSPharmTech, PROTEINA and MEPSGEN U.S.
Jeff Cranmer:You are listening to a special edition of the BioCentury This Week podcast. Recorded live on stage November 6th At Venture Café Cambridge at the Cambridge Innovation Center for KHIDI's K-Blockbuster Night, BioCentury's. Would like to thank KHIDI, that's the Korea Health Industry Development Institute. For sponsoring the event now here's your host, Josh Berlin.
Josh Berlin:welcome to a special edition of the BioCentury's this week podcast. Today we are coming to you live from the Venture Cafe Cambridge in the heart of one of the world's most important biotech hubs. My name is Josh Berlin and I lead business development for BioCentury's. as many of you podcast listeners know, we have taken the podcast on the road. For several live recordings this year, most recently in Shanghai last month at our 12th China Healthcare Summit. You may of course listen to, uh, the BioCentury's this week podcast and our sister podcast, the BioCentury Show on Spotify or Apple or wherever you listen, to podcasts. this is the first time that BioCentury has recorded a podcast in the biotech hub of Boston, Cambridge, and it's really great, speaking on behalf of my colleague Simone. It's really great to be. Back in town, and seeing so many, uh, great faces in the room. before we get started, I did want to thank our friends at KHIDI, which is known as the Korea Health Industry Development Institute under Korea's Ministry of Health and Welfare, for sponsoring this special edition of the podcast. Also, a special thanks to Venture Cafe at the Cambridge Innovation Center, where we are recording today's podcast during KHIDI's Blockbuster Night. For those who don't know, KHIDI's Blockbuster Initiative, it's an expansion program that helps Korea life sciences companies to enter major innovation hubs like Boston, Cambridge. And we'll be talking a little bit today, about that program. I'm really, really looking forward to today's discussion. BioCentury has visited, South Korea several times in the last, couple of years. and as everyone knows, Asia deals right now are really, really hot in the industry. A lot of that, deal flow is focused on China, but BioCentury's is also seeing, growing opportunities across what we call Asia's emerging arc of innovation, which includes South Korea, Singapore, Japan, Australia, and elsewhere. And we think Korea in particular represents an opportunity. in addition to a growing biotech ecosystem with opportunities for western biopharma companies and investors to potentially source innovation, we also think there's a lot of opportunities to accelerate drug development through Korea clinical trials and CDMO manufacturers. And in fact, BioCentury's will be out in Korea in March for our 5th East-West Biopharma Summit. we'll be out there in Seoul. If anyone wants to join us and learn more, uh, please check out the website at BioCenturyEastWest.com. so with that brief intro, uh, let's get started. We're gonna split today's podcast into two mini panels. We're gonna start with an industry session followed by an investor session. we're gonna start right now with the industry session. I first of all wanted to introduce my colleague, uh, Simone Fishburn, BioCentury's VP and Editor in Chief who of course needs no introduction to our podcast listeners. Also on this session, Simone and I are joined by Aram Hong, CEO of Korea, medtech startup, Apollon, which is part of the K-Blockbuster program here in Cambridge. And also Andy Whittle, who is Global Head of BDNL in the cardiorenal metabolic space for Boehringer Ingelheim, and he's also based here in the Boston Cambridge area. And as we're gonna learn, I think Boehringer Ingelheim has been one of the more active western biopharmas in Korea. So look forward to hearing, Andy's take on that. let's get started. So Simone, uh, maybe we'll start with you. Uh, you know, BioCentury recently issued, uh, you and your team a, a report about Asia deals. We got a lot of feedback about that, transactions, from the start of 2023 through mid 2025. Obviously a lot of discussion about China in there, but also some, I thought, some interesting takeaways about Korea. One in particular that, that jumped out to me was, I believe it was Korea represented 12% of the total Asia deals, but 20% of the first in class partnerships. maybe walk us through, that report sort of top, top level and, and what your, your key takeaways were from that.
Simone Fishburn:Yeah. Thanks Josh. Thanks everybody. It's really fun to be here. I don't think people are gonna argue with what an important, hub this is. Certainly not people here are gonna argue with that. Um, yeah. So we did look at these deals, uh, out-licensing deals from Asian. So what this meant was these were Asia based biotechs. since, as you say, it was about a 30 month thing. It was from the beginning of, of 2023, through, I guess the end of June this year. I think they were like just shy of 200 deals. We were looking at western biotechs and pharmas, MNCs, multinational corporations. That were licensing in these assets, right? That there was a, a handful of, of M&A, but actually M&A was not a big part of this picture, which is something we might talk about. but the thing that struck me was two thirds of the deals were for Western biotech license. Bias. Right. And so I think generally when we think about deals with Asia and people on the ground, and you know, we, we've got one here, it's mostly people think about getting pharmas and pharmas have really been on the ground, and I know we're gonna talk about that, but I think the degree to which western biotechs. are, reaching out, creating partnerships in licensing assets is just extraordinary. And, um, you, you're right that a lot were from China. so that was one of the, the take homes. I think the other is, the area of innovation. I think people tend to think that it's all about cancer. We are seeing a real rise in INI right? Immunology and, and inflammation and, certainly on the China front. with obesity too. And so what we're learning is that, you know, very, very fast innovation sort of catches fire in Asia. And now I'm gonna lean into that a little bit more for Korea because to your point Yeah. 20% of the first in class deals. And what, what we see is that among there, there were obviously fewer deals from Korea or from Korean biotechs, but the proportion among those of first in class assets was really quite high, was much higher. And what that tells me, and I really am keen to discuss it with you guys, is. You know, it sort of speaks to an appetite for risk, right? Going first in class, and we define that BioCentury as you could be the first against a target, or you could be going against a target with a new modality or into a new indication. But basically there's a very different risk profile for first in class. And while China is getting there, and I think as people are moving away from thinking about it, even just as fast followers. It seems like careers had that appetite sort of inbuilt for a while. So I'm gonna stop here and see where you wanna go with that.
Josh Berlin:Yeah, yeah. No, that, that's great. Um, uh, Simone, so, so Andy, maybe, maybe we'll go to you. Um, next. you know, there's been I think a, a few. deals, this year that were highlighted in the BioCentury report, you know, GSK and Korea ABL deal, which I think was 75, 77 million upfront. and there's a few others there that, that sort of struck my, eye. but then, you know, you, you guys just did a deal, the timing couldn't be better. We love having folks join the podcast who are hot off of a deal. And, uh, tell us a little bit, you know, this was a deal with, uh, ADC deal with a Korean company called AimedBio. tell us a little bit about how that happened and, and what you're seeing, from Boehringer Ingelheim's perspective in terms of innovation, and opportunities for partnerships in Korea.
Andrew Whittle:Yeah, so maybe if I could, uh, set the context here, which is. We are not new to being very, very interested in the Korean innovation space and we, we've been in Korea for. Long time, and I've been at the company since 2021 and I know it stems way before that, that we've had a physical presence in Asia for sure. And in my time here, we've really doubled down on having a, a boots on the ground approach to Korea itself. June Hahn is someone who helped organize this event, and she's our sort of person right there, my eyes and ears for my global team in what's happening in Korea. I think I would sort of echo what you were saying about the. Risk willingness of the Korean biotech sector. And I think we've realized that for a while because we also have, as a company, you know, Boehringer does tend to partner a little bit earlier. We have a big research organization and we are willing to step in and share some of that risk if the science is solid. And I think that's been a really. Obvious sort of meeting of concepts between the Korean approach and our approach, which is if you aim big, go bold. We want transformative first in class medicines. it's a good place for us to find exciting, bold, new ideas with that ambition to be first in class and to be transformative. And I think the deal you saw us make two weeks ago. is a product of that.
Simone Fishburn:And then I'm gonna jump in. Okay. Because, and we at BioCentury, uh, I'm gonna even use the word suffer from this. Okay. Because Boehringer does a lot of really interesting, really early stage deals.
Andrew Whittle:Mm-hmm.
Simone Fishburn:And maybe because you're private, we don't know about a lot of the stuff that you guys do. Okay. This makes it hard for us. We would like to know, you have a presence there, but you know, it, it's not necessarily broadcasting, you know, we'll see these announcements about deals. We're like, wow, that is actually, and so we do notice actually this sort of appetite that you guys have for early stage things and for risk. So maybe you can talk us through a little bit. When you are out there, you are looking at this asset. how are you comparing that with what you could get outside of Korea? What, what is your, what is your process? Now, I've got you in front of us so I can ask you this
Andrew Whittle:Captive audience. Yeah. We are real. I mean, I know a lot of companies say this, but I've been at the company for four and a half years now, and it, it's...
Simone Fishburn:Your going to say you're the partner of choice.
Andrew Whittle:No, I'm not gonna say that. I'm, I, I say the idea that we put science first is the lived ethos of the company. So it really does come down to it being really good science. What do we find in Korea? Why do we keep going? Why have we been there for so long? Why are we still there? Why are we doubling down now with. People like June, and I'm calling in Shanghai as well in in some of these, Asian arenas where we really want to be getting there first to these cool new ideas. It's because we see really high quality science coming out of biotechs, particularly in Korea as well. I mean, I've had interactions in the CRM space. you've seen a deal this week in the oncology space. We were interested in INR as well in immunology and respiratory medicine. It's because the science is really high quality, but it's not just about this high quality science either. There's something about the interactions I've had with a lot of Korean biotechs, which is they've really thought about their readiness to partner and to mobilize and accelerate the development of the asset with a partner. So it's, it's this. Added bonus of you walk into the initial conversations and yes, the data's great. Yes, the ambition is high, but the company structure and the people that are behind the impetus there have really thought, before they even speak to me, they've really thought about what they want from partnership, which often I go to companies all over the world and say, what do you want in the partnership? And they kind of
Simone Fishburn:money is their answer. but, but, but I and I. I want to get involved in the science. My teams want to get involved in the science, and what I want to know from them is like, what's your next challenge? What do you need help with? What, what's the next big barrier for you to overcome to get this into patients? So I'm gonna ask a question and, and maybe I'm sorry if I'm messing you up.
Andrew Whittle:No, go ahead. Go ahead.
Simone Fishburn:So, you know, one of the things we talk about with China and the growth of the ecosystem there. Is that you've had, you know, returnees, sea turtles, they've gone back, they've worked in pharmas, they've learnt this, and so there's a maturation going on there. The Korean biotechs haven't really had that much exposure, so maybe you can talk about the this as well. Like where are they getting this sophistication from what's behind it and what's their training ground?
Aram Hong:Oh yeah. Um, before answering that, so I need to, explain,
Simone Fishburn:who you are.
Aram Hong:Yeah, yeah. Right. Yeah. Uh, what we are doing, so, we are developing non-invasive continuous glucose monitoring. So our mission is limit the subcutaneous is, uh, the needle from the existing CGM. So, um, it's, uh, 2025. So, the needle, in the skin, face, uh, something wrong. it's unnatural. We are not the traditional, the, uh, I mean the pure biotech, so kind of the medical available. So this is a, conversion, the fusion between the life sciences and the precision engineering. Back to the real question. In Korea for several decades, the top students have gone into the medicine and pharma and, uh, biotech and, Precigen engineering. So, um,
Josh Berlin:so, so I, I is that has that, um, you know, we probably should have introduced to begin with that you, are the founder and CEO, of Apollon. But you're also, you're, you know, you've moved out to Cambridge. You're, you're here part of the K-Blockbuster, program, which, um, you know, we were talking, uh, earlier, uh, just one to one about how you moved your family here and real build big bet on your, on your company here. So can you talk also about sort of how your background has allowed you to sort of, um, set up shop here and what, what the K-Blockbuster program is, is all about and how that's part of your strategy.
Aram Hong:Oh yeah. Um, the getting the chance to be, on this podcast is already a big benefit from the K-Blockbuster program. So KHIDI, the Korea Health Industry Development Institute, the organization running the K-Blockbuster program has been hugely supportive for Korean startups are trying to land in the greater Boston area. They provide the, free, all pieces space for, uh, 30, Korean companies.
Josh Berlin:You're, you're based here?
Aram Hong:At the, at the
Josh Berlin:Innovation Center?
Aram Hong:Yeah. So, the reason why I moved to here, uh, last year, so our first market is U.S. CGM market, U.S. diabetes care market. So we needed to conduct a feasibility study for FDA clearance. Yeah. So, um, there was, uh, the reason, the only reason why I, moved here and, uh, we, operate two sides in Seoul and in Boston. So we are in collaboration with, uh, MIT for doing that. for the developing non-invasive CGM. I wanna say, to the international founders, who, want to operate the or so, uh, move to the U.S. market don't send summoners over here. Because, uh, the CEO or, representative, must be here for their presence.
Josh Berlin:So being on the ground here is really important to your strategy.
Aram Hong:Yeah. Yeah.
Josh Berlin:And you're doing clinical trials in the U.S. also, right?
Aram Hong:Oh, we are about to conduct the feasibility study at Boston Medical Center early next year. Before that we completed the, feasibility study with the non-diabetic people at MIT,
Josh Berlin:Really fascinating story. And for those, listening to the podcast that haven't sort of looked into the K-Blockbuster program, or looked at what's happening here at the Cambridge Innovation Center. You know, we, we highly recommend you check it out. going back to you, um, Andy, you know, you referenced, uh, your colleague June, who you know Boehringer Ingelheim has BD on the ground in Korea. I mean, how important, do you think that is to have the right person on the ground to build those relationships you need in order to do the deals?
Andrew Whittle:It's essential. It's essential both to be there in physical presence, but it becomes even more essential once you actually start the process of interacting with the companies who are based there. I have a team that's, I mean, well, the whole BD team at Boehringer has a global mindset. So if we have a portfolio ambition that we want to bring in external innovation from somewhere, we look globally. And when we find those things, which recently we've, we've been finding a few in Korea and in Asia, having a person the able to be the conduit. I mean, look, time zones are problematic.
Josh Berlin:Yeah.
Andrew Whittle:These are complex discussions early on about the science, about getting the right people in the room, having a physical presence in the territory so you can coordinate what's the discussion that needs to happen, what is the challenge that you need to answer the question on next? Also trust, like building the relationship that, you know, we're a long way away with my headquarters in Germany and the U.S. but making them feel that we're really dedicated to working together once we sign a deal, having that local contact that helps build the deal, figure out how it's gonna work, and really build trust and, and a sort of conduit for scientific exchange, right? That's why they're there.
Simone Fishburn:Me again. Can you talk a little bit about whether you see specific strengths in either therapeutic areas or technologies or something that would make Korea a higher up port of call?
Andrew Whittle:I would actually say the breadth that I'm seeing emerge in Korea is why it's becoming a higher port of call. So yes, you're right. Oncology's been there for a long time and we've, we've just signed an oncology deal. I'm increasingly talking to companies in Korea with more of a CRM flavor, which historically
Simone Fishburn:Cardio-renal-metabolic.
Andrew Whittle:Sorry, yeah. Cardio-renal-metabolic, which is sort of, I wouldn't say emerging anymore. For me, it's, I see a lot of companies now in Korea with that angle, and I know my immunology colleagues as well have a, have a strong basis there. So they're, some of our core therapy areas at Boehringer, right. Both for our franchises that exist and for our ambitions for the future. And Korea sort of is increasingly ticking a lot of the boxes of both the expertise, the innovation, and your point again, the willingness to aim high for not just being a, a next gen medicine, but really bringing first in class transformational therapies. I think that's why Boehringer has a good history there is it's that risk sharing willingness to go big and really try and bring something that's gonna be transformative rather than incremental.
Josh Berlin:Yeah, I think we got time for maybe one more question on this first panel. So, so Aram, maybe I'll, I'll turn back to you, you know, any point or any, any tips for, western life sciences companies, Western investors in terms of how to build relationships with, folks like you, you know, Korea, life sciences, entrepreneurs. Like what, if you were based here in, in Boston or based in one or the other. You know, US hubs like San Francisco. Like what, how can they meet folks with, like, you without, uh, the obvious one getting on a, on a long flight to Seoul?
Aram Hong:Yeah. Um, actually, so I am the, um, the early stage startup and CEO. So I'm not a, the investors or the global BD leader like Andy.
Josh Berlin:Right.
Aram Hong:So, in my case, we found the US partner first, MIT. So this is, uh, the, river's, uh, relationship with, I mean, so we, uh, first founded, US partner. But actually, so I have, uh, tip of the, the partnering with, uh, the Korean, startups or, life science startup and company. So, start with the early conversation with, Some, Korean companies, that, the operating in the US in Boston because, many of the Korean, uh, startups, is here already.
Andrew Whittle:Yeah.
Aram Hong:So, those startups and companies is the one of the strongest life science companies or startup in Korea.
Josh Berlin:Cause they've been selected
Aram Hong:Yes.
Josh Berlin:KHIDI program and then sort of embedded on that.
Aram Hong:Yeah. Right?
Josh Berlin:Okay. So folks listening on the podcast will have to come out to, Cambridge here and, uh, and check out the Venture Cafe and, and come visit with folks like you and, and folks like Andy. You know, we're, we're just out of time for on this first panel. Did wanna say, you know, Simone is, is supporting some really great socks here and we do have a bit of a tradition here at, the BioCentury podcast when we are doing it live, where we like to sport our socks. And so I did wanna. Give Andy and, Arum, some BioCentury podcast socks.
Aram Hong:I'll, I'll come back again.
Josh Berlin:We wear 'em with pride. We really have enjoyed the discussion. So thank you so much for, joining us. We're gonna take a quick break here on the podcast and we'll be right back, momentarily with our next panel, talking with, two great investors. So thank you so much. Thank you.
Alanna Farro:BioCentury This Week is brought to you by The 5th East-West Biopharma Summit in South Korea. An arc of innovation is emerging across Asia, and Western biopharma leaders are taking note-from cross-border deals to newcos. In March, 2026, The 5th BioCentury-BayHelix East-West BioPharma Summit visits South Korea for the first time. Meet the biopharma leaders putting Korea innovation on the global map. Learn why Korea has become a clinical trial in manufacturing hub. Discover if Korea is the next hotspot for NewCo formation. Plus, meet biopharma innovators from India to Singapore, to China and Japan. Register now at BioCenturyEastWest.com.
Josh Berlin:We are back on this special episode of the BioCentury's this week podcast. Next up is our investor session. So I'd first like to introduce, uh, Debra Peattie, Managing Partner of SV Investments US, and Spencer Nam, Managing Partner of KSV Global, both based here in Boston, Cambridge. Debra, let's start with, you, if we could, I'm gonna, stick my neck out here and, predict that you are not, uh, a Korean or a Korean American, uh, yet. you are working, for a, um, you know, a Korean investment firm here in, in the Boston area, after, you know, a long career in, in Western biopharma and academia, which means that my question is why, what, what has attracted you to this opportunity? And, and where do you think, the opportunities are for, SV here in Boston?
Debra Peattie:Yeah. So, um. In terms of the question about, uh, a little bit of background about SV Investment, the SV stands for strategic value, and so SV Investment is headquartered in Seoul, which is where it was founded in 2006. unlike some other investment firms, they span a wide variety of different industries. The, the biotechnology and healthcare being one of those things, they've expanded well in Southeast Asia. And so it's kind of the reverse of what you were talking about in some ways with Andy in the sense that they are now looking to, expand into the US and establish a footprint here, which is what the Boston office SVUS, is focused on doing. The other two members of our team, um, are Korean nationals. They've been here many years, but they're Korean. And so I guess I represent the boots on the ground, here in the U.S., Largely Boston, Cambridge, where I've been for the past 30 plus years. So I bring the kind of connections and the network here in the Kendall Square Boston area, which is what they're seeking. And then again, to the point that was raised in the last panel, Seo and Jin, my colleagues. Have the ability to go back and forth between here and Seoul. Of course, they're fluent in Korean as well as in English. And so we're, I guess our combination of skills and connections is, what attracted the SV headquarters to the idea of having a, a focused point of entry here.
Josh Berlin:Great. Um, really helpful. So, so Spencer, let's, let's turn to you. You're also based here in, in Boston. you were previously, I believe, at SV and, now at KSV, which is a growth fund investing, I believe in us, Europe, and Asia. So, tell us a little bit about, you know, KSV and, and what your US strategy is and how it relates to Korea.
Spencer Nam:Sure. Um, glad to be here. thanks for inviting. so KSV Global as the name suggests. it's a global, platform. we invest across a number of different industries, healthcare being one of them. my background actually before I formed KSV about 10 years ago was, uh, a registered analyst on Wall Street Securities Analyst covering, uh, med tech, and diagnostic space. So, uh, I did that for about 10 years, was coming with a lot of, uh, background in that and from the market perspective, how the healthcare companies, valued and, and also invested. so I'm trying to, uh, apply that into, uh, private, companies we formed, uh, KSV for that. I'm a Korean American, uh, spent, about 14 years in Korea. And then, uh, my family moved to Boston area, when I was a teenager, and, uh, have spent about 40 years here. So, I have grown with, uh, both, you know, exposure to Korean culture as well as, Obviously I spend most of my, academic and professional, career here in, in the States. The reason why, Korea has been part of, uh, KSV's strategy is that, we've seen a lot of interest from the Korean government and also Korean companies and investors to, uh, come to the United States to establish presence. not only in terms of strategic establishments, but also financial opportunities that would, generate above average returns. We are trying to respond to the market demand that, Korea has for the US healthcare industry, a US healthcare market. And, uh, we are trying to, uh, create a bridge between, Korea, uh, Korean companies and US investors. And US capital. So my role really identifying interesting companies, that, uh, has a potential to be, uh, significant, investment opportunities for US investors as well as Korean investors many of whom we partner with.
Josh Berlin:Thank you for that, uh, Spencer. Debra, you know, there's obviously a lot of famous biotech venture funds here in, uh, in Boston, Cambridge. quite a few, uh, biotechs obviously, you know, probably the, the largest biotech hub. A lot of U.S. biotechs with, I'd imagine, um, opportunities potentially to get in front of those US VCs. So, walk us through a little bit. If I'm a US biotech CEO. Like what, what, what are the advantages perhaps of looking to a firm like SV or a Korea investor when I'm looking to, you know, raise my next round? Why, why, should I, talk to someone like you for a syndicate? Are there other, in other words, are there strategic reasons to, to bring in a, a, a Korea investor like SV.
Debra Peattie:Yes, there are. So SV the, the average size of the funds under SV Management and they've got about 1.5 billion under management, is roughly a hundred million or a little less. So in the spectrum of venture capital funds. That's a relatively small size fund. So that means that we look to join syndicates as opposed to being a lead investor defining the term sheet. A key thing that we fold into our strategy is, recognizing that we're not going to be the lead, is what value can we bring to the table, in this case for, you know, small early stage biotechs in Boston, Cambridge that might be compelling for someone looking for funding and, a key thing to consider is, say the ability to conduct clinical trials, because even early stage companies, you should really start from the very beginning. Think about who's gonna be manufacturing your material, because as statistics show, since most things do not successfully get to drug approval. Your clinical trials are going to be really where the CMC grade, y ou know, modal molecules, whether they're biologics or small molecules, or cells, are going to be used. So you need to think from the very beginning about who's going to be making it, how much that's going to cost, and about the trials as well. And so, South Korea has, you know, excellent skills and abilities in both of those fields. The CDMOs and the clinical trial network there. Yeah. Let me jump in because I was wondering what you were gonna say, because this was going to be my question actually. You know, we've really seen, this become a critical issue. Now I can tell you, I went out to, I was just talking with somebody. I went out to Korea the first time, I think it's 10 years ago now, and back then they were saying we are a center for clinical trials. Yeah.
Simone Fishburn:Obviously Australia's been doing that. I'm not sure how much it's on people's radar. We now see people waking up to the idea that in China, of course, you know, they are generating early clinical data very, very fast. And that's compelling data.
Debra Peattie:Yeah.
Simone Fishburn:That is driving deal flow.
Debra Peattie:Yeah.
Simone Fishburn:Whether people in the West are like, you know, well, we can do it, or, you know, it, it, it isn't, it's driving deal flow. Maybe you can talk a little bit about are there specific areas within clinical trials where Korea offers an advantage, can you get into the clinic faster? What is the value proposition for doing it?
Debra Peattie:Yeah,
Simone Fishburn:Doing your early clinical trials in, in Korea.
Debra Peattie:And you're right, I think this is not on a lot of radar screens. So I think one of the key things is... so, Seoul is, you know, a very highly populated city. With a large number, I think it's about eight to 10, you know, top tier medical schools, hospitals. So it's a high concentration of potential subjects slash patients for trials in an area where there are a lot of hospital beds. So, for example, if you look at the total hospital beds, which you know, are, are a surrogate for the ability to do a clinical trial. In Seoul, as of now, there are about 90,000, so nine zero thousand. In Boston, Cambridge, there are 4,000 beds, so the number of hospital beds in Seoul is 10% of the whole number of hospital beds in the United States, and there are 10 million people in Seoul. so like Boston and Greater Boston, if you do Seoul and greater Seoul and Seoul, greater Seoul their 20 million people, which is approximately, you know, half, the population is 50 million in Korea.
Simone Fishburn:I know we wanna bring Spencer in, but let just ask you one follow up. So definitely, you know, and I broke this down and we had an article, which I don't know, do we have show notes, Josh? We could put in the show notes.
Josh Berlin:Yeah.
Simone Fishburn:Breaking down between China and the U.S. d efinitely the bigger part is patient recruitment.
Debra Peattie:Yep.
Simone Fishburn:But there are also parts of the regulatory process and obviously in Australia, well not obviously, but those, you know, in Australia that is smoother and easier. What does that look like in korea? Are there, is there less red tape? Like what is the process?
Debra Peattie:From my perspective anyway, what Korea has going for is it's got a nationalized health system that covers 97% of the population, single payer system. And it's totally, all the data are collected, it's all in one place. So their ability to mobilize data quickly and the fact that since again, it's a nationalized system, you go to the hospital there, even when you're well. So the hospitals have healthy people, they have unhealthy people. And so that's just where you go for your healthcare. So I think it, in terms of red tape, I wouldn't say it's less red tape, I'd say it's so well organized.
Simone Fishburn:Mm-hmm.
Debra Peattie:And everyone is under a single system. It's not fragmented. And that leads to the ability of rapid recruitment, aside from the government involvement in, you know, utilizing their clinical trial infrastructure for the good of the company. And, you know, there are surveys done there asking people on the street, do you know what clinical trials are? Would you be willing to participate? What are the drivers? So it, it's something that they very proactively encourage because they recognize their skillset. I mean, real quickly what the statistics currently are that a trial in Korea can be done 40% faster. And 40% less cost than in the U.S.
Simone Fishburn:Right? So the, the U.K. needs to be listening to this podcast because this is exactly what they're trying to do.
Debra Peattie:Yeah.
Simone Fishburn:But anyway, let's, let's go on Josh.
Josh Berlin:Yeah. Yeah. Great, great discussion. So Spencer, let, let's flip it if, we could. You know, uh, Simone and I, Simone just mentioned, uh, you know, trip 10 years ago, but we've also been out several times over the last year, uh, us as well as, some colleagues, you know, been seeing some really interesting e arly stage biotechs out there that frankly, I think with the exception maybe of, of Andy who was on the earlier panel are, are not necessarily on the radar of a lot of Western biopharma execs or Western investors. So, if you were a Korea, uh, you know, biotech, a founder, like, like how do you prepare for globalization? How do, how do you find, you know, the right global investors, the right global partners? I predict we're gonna have a lot of folks listening to the podcast from Korea. You know, what, what are some, some guidance you can provide, you know, with your experience here in Boston.
Spencer Nam:Sure. And, uh, I'll preface this comment by saying that I'm an investor, investing s omeone else's capital, to generate returns,
Simone Fishburn:That's the best kind of capital.
Spencer Nam:Well, you know,
Simone Fishburn:But, yeah.
Spencer Nam:I have to, you know, obviously I have essentially a boss, in the limited partners that I have to, uh, respond to. And they can't wait 20 years to deliver returns for them. Uh, we will be, we will be out of business. So it's a much less timeframe, through which we have to, make something work as in, you know, we have to exit. From that standpoint, Korea can be a bit of a challenge, especially in healthcare, biotech space, where lot of these assets are still in a much earlier stage than some of the assets that you come across here in the United States. I think one of the challenges that we have faced, up until now is that, uh, a lot of the researches that, uh, were being done. Projects that were being done in Korea, who are less known by U.S. mainstream, you know, the companies and also in institutions here, including the investors. So, because the Korea is on the other side of the globe, relative to the United States, the different, culture and the language, just there's a fundamental, sort of roadblock that you have to overcome. And that is just how do we get ourselves known to the US market. Now, fortunately from Korea, Korea standpoint, we have, these, uh, the mega companies from U.S. and Europe now going into Korea, opening up offices and really canvassing the, the country to find these good deals. But still there's a, there's a bit of a gap between what we know here with information that we have versus what's available over there. So if you are a, uh, an exciting Korean company, biotech space or a healthcare space that you, you want to access, global market, I think you have to come to the United States. And when I talk to a lot of Korean, uh, entrepreneurs. Their sort of idea of going to, coming to United States is like, you gotta land a ship almost, right?
Josh Berlin:Yeah.
Spencer Nam:But it's not like that. It's, you actually, just think of it as like you are flying over United States, you know, 10,000 feet on a plane and you're jumping with a parachute and you're landing by yourself in Boston, Massachusetts, uh, or San Francisco area, and you are all alone. But that starts the whole process of you becoming part of the network and be able to associate yourself with all these, uh, uh, established entrepreneurs, the big pharmas, the investors and so forth. And it's just really the, I think the, recursion of meeting the folks in the U.S., be able to introduce your story. And, you know, that creates a, a momentum that leads to, uh, more investments and, uh, you know, potential collaborations with, uh, big pharmas and so forth. So it, it, it's just a matter of face time and, and I really think that that's very critical. Even if you're not comfortable with English, you just gotta come here first and then it'll happen. Because Korea's got ton of great, uh, research, and ton of great scientists that are working on some very interesting stuff, but they're just not being publicized enough.
Josh Berlin:I saw some stat recently about how, um, the delegation from Korea at BIO this year, which was in, Boston, was the largest international delegation of any country. But it sounds like what you're saying is you need to go to these events, you need to go to BIO, you need to go to J.P. Morgan, but you know, it sounds like you need to do more than that also.
Spencer Nam:Yeah. Well, yes you do because, uh, so one thing that this is culturally you can't appreciate that until, until you, you are part of the Korean, sort of the, the, you know, the culture is, is there is actually a national effort to turn biotech space, the healthcare space as one of their long-term growth opportunities as a country. So the Korean government is spending amazing amount of money trying to, uh, support all these companies, Korean fledgling companies, big pharmas, you know, anybody to really come to U.S. and, and build their presence here. But just coming to these conferences is not exactly how you're gonna develop relationships. What you need to do is really, just like, uh, Apollon and, and others that have come to United States through K-Blockbuster program, for example. You gotta be here and be part of this ecosystem. And
Simone Fishburn:Can I
Spencer Nam:Go ahead.
Simone Fishburn:Can I ask something? that, Andy said on the earlier panel from Boehringer, which is that when they walk in to conversations with Korean innovators. Really, they start off, they're very, very thorough, they're very rigorous, they walk in knowing what they want. Which to me speaks to a sort of certain level of sophistication. Can you talk about that?
Spencer Nam:Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. So there is this sophistication on the, uh, the sort of the US market side. And there's a sophistication, grades of sophistication on the Korea side. So, Bo ehringer Ingelheim, extremely sophisticated buyer. They can look at a particular project or particular scientist and they can actually evaluate them in a very sophisticated and very detailed way. How do we fit this particular project into our, uh, our system? We as investors are much less equipped for something like that. So we, we are relying on, you know, sort of outside signals, for them to tell us, for us to recognize, oh, this is a great opportunity. And so, if the Korean companies are trying to license out some, you know, some of their assets to U.S. companies or global companies, then you gotta somehow bring them over to Korea or you gotta come to United States and meet them here and have these discussions going back and forth. It's not gonna be like one and done. It's gotta be multiple discussions that you'll have to go through, right? So there is that challenge that you have to overcome. But if you are looking for investments, then, clearly Korean government and Korean investors are investing a lot of capital into Korean companies. But for you to really get to the next level of development, you need the bigger capital out of U.S., in my opinion. And in order to do so, you can't just address the sophistication that Boehringer Ingelheim or Pfizer, or Novo Nordisk is looking for you gotta, you know, talk to us, the investors. Were not as sophisticated as these pharma companies, but we gotta feel, we gotta be comfortable betting on you because this is a lot of risk that we are taking. And by the way, if you are here in Boston, for example, where I'm, you know, operating, it's much easier for us to feel comfortable with your story than if you are in Seoul, Korea and we have to do a Zoom and. Gosh, I have no idea what happens on a day-to-day basis. That's a challenge.
Simone Fishburn:Let's get Debra's view on that.
Debra Peattie:Yeah, I was just thinking, because again, for us, we're in the Boston office of SV, you know, we are looking here. So what we tried to do is of course find, you know, top tier science, but then, ensure that that aligns with the interests of, you know, our colleagues over in Seoul in terms of the bio team. So it's, um, I would say to Spencer's point, it is more straightforward here to assess, say the interest of big pharma and even other biotechs because they're all here in an emerging technology. And then kind of one of the challenges that our team has is to align that with, you know, the interests of the home office. So it's,
Spencer Nam:And, and let me add to that, and, you know, as a, as an investor in the United States, I can tell you right now, the researchers or even pharma companies, they may not feel pressure or the concerns associated with CFIUS, uh, reviews. We are feeling that actually quite like literally. Every deal that we do, if it's particularly if, if the deal is in, in Asia, for example, we have to make sure that it does not trigger CFIUS. So what that means is actually Korea is one of the few places in the world where we can actually identify attractive healthcare companies that will not trigger that. Unfortunately for a lot of different reasons, China, even though there's a lot of data coming out and all of that, it's a concern for us. We don't have a, uh, you know, like a location in, in Shanghai that we can, you know, leverage to invest in these companies. We, investors in the United States, almost everybody, I can tell you this right now is going to have trouble. Investing in in an asset in China, which makes the big pharmas, global big pharmas a huge advantage, you know, advantageous position for them to go in and, and, you know, pick these assets up. But for us, we really gotta, if you're gonna invest outside of a United States, it probably creates one of the few places that we can, we can find attractive early stage companies.
Josh Berlin:Yeah, that, that's great guys. I mean, we could go on I think all night. I mean, I'd love to continue the discussion, but we are running out of time. So first off, wanted to, you know, thank, Spencer and, uh, and Debra, with two, uh, pairs, pair of each of, BioCentury's fantastic This Week podcast socks. And, um, really, really wanted to thank KHIDI and Venture Cafe Cambridge for hosting the BioCentury's This Week podcast. Thank all of you for joining. Really, um, thank, our, our, uh, our guest, and Wanted to also do a quick plug, uh, BioCentury's podcast will be back on the road, later this month, November 19th, in the U.K. on the sidelines of London Life Sciences Week and Jefferies Week. You can find out more about that at BioCenturyLondon. com. And if you have enjoyed today's discussion about Korea opportunities, we hope you'll join us March 9th to 11th in Seoul, where BioCentury's 5th East- West Biopharma Summit will take place. You can learn more about that at BioCenturyeastwest.com. And for everyone here in the audience, you know, we're gonna have a great group of companies presenting that are part of the, uh, KHIDI Blockbuster program, so stick around for that. And thank you all for joining, and we hope to, uh, continue the discussion on the next podcast. So thank you.
Spencer Nam:Good to be here. Thank you. Thank you.
Eric Pierce:BioCentury would like to thank the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare and KHIDI for supporting the BioCentury This Week podcast. To learn more about the K-Blockbuster Companies, visit kblockbuster.com/directory
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