April 26, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Celltrion Healthcare is expected to complete its initial public offering before mid-August, as regulators are set to wrap up their special audit of the company with a mere “warning” and make way for the continuation of the IPO.

According to local reports on May 20, the Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants has concluded its in-depth audit of Celltrion Healthcare’s accounting practices and will present the results to the Financial Services Commission’s Audit and Inspection Office for a final decision on June 1.

The KICPA, which inspects the financial records of unlisted companies, had initiated the special audit in March after discerning that Celltrion Healthcare may have over calculated earnings from its drug, Truxima, by 10 billion won (US$8.93 million) in 2015.

The KICPA had taken issue with the accounting methods under which Celltrion Healthcare, the sales and marketing unit of South Korean biopharma company Celltrion, had calculated and processed the value of a contract deposit paid by one of its European marketing partners in 2015.

The audit had thwarted Celltrion Healthcare’s stated plans to go public on the Kosdaq market in April as well as ignited concerns that the firm’s listing process could be significantly delayed.

As Celltrion Healthcare has already fixed its 2015 financial records to meet the KICPA’s standard, the company said it expects to get off with a “warning,” the lowest of the four punishment levels from the FSC, or an even lighter ruling.

The KICPA has reportedly concluded that although Celltrion Healthcare had initially differed in its interpretation of the contract deposit in question, it has voluntarily fixed its record in line with the KICPA’s standard, making it eligible for a lighter ruling.

A finance officer from Celltrion Healthcare said that the accounting firm that had prepared the problematic financial records had already gotten off with a “warning” from the FSC, and that the Celltrion unit would also receive a similar, if not lighter, administrative sentence.

The FSC’s Securities and Future Commission is slated to hold another meeting on June 21 to reach a conclusive decision on the Celltrion Healthcare case, after which the firm can submit a securities report to the bourse operator Korea Exchange and begin its IPO process.

By law, the KRX can choose to re-evaluate the company’s IPO plans. However, the bourse operator is unlikely to take such action due to the indirect nature of the accounting issue, the Celltrion Healthcare official said.

Based on the positive outlook, Celltrion Healthcare is planning to submit a securities report to the FSC in line with this timetable and go public by the legal IPO deadline of Sept. 14.

As Celltrion Healthcare is also inviting foreign investors to purchase its shares, the firm is set to aim for an even earlier listing date of Aug. 15. This is the legal deadline according to US Securities and Exchange Commission rules that require companies to go public within 135 days of submitting their earnings report included in the “offering circular.” 

By Sohn Ji-young/The Korea Herald (jys@heraldcorp.com)