April 27, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Celltrion Healthcare, the marketing affiliate of biopharma firm Celltrion, said on July 18 it has set the price for its initial public offering at 41,000 won (US$36.43), marking the largest listing on the nation’s secondary bourse KOSDAQ.

The firm aims to raise about 1 trillion won through the listing on July 28 with plans to use it for diversifying its drug pipeline through acquisitions and expanding its sales network overseas. 

The exclusive distributor for Celltrion’s biosimilar treatments such as Remsima is offering 24.6 million shares, the highest on KOSDAQ, since Cheil Industries’ 421.8 billion won listing in December 2014.

The planned listing will raise the firm’s market capitalization to about 5.6 trillion won, making it the second-largest company on KOSDAQ after its bigger sibling Celltrion.

Celltrion Healthcare sells biosimilar drugs developed by Celltrion, referencing big pharma firms’ top-selling treatments like Johnson & Johnson’s Remicade and Roche’s Rituxan.

The quota of shares reserved for institutional buyers -- 18.4 million units -- was subscribed around 38 times with a total of 561 investors placing bids. The company said large investors from Singapore, Hong Kong and the US showed particular interest.

“With the listing, we will leap to become a top-tier company in the global health care industry and strive to further increase corporate value,” Celltrion Healthcare CEO Kim Man-hoo said in a release.

It will take investor orders on July 19-20. Mirae Asset Daewoo and USB are arranging the sale.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)