-Aiming to become a global pharma through synergy between the two companies -On 22nd February, Bukwang’s affiliated person entered into a stock purchase agreement to sell 7.73 million shares to OCI. -OCI will become the largest shareholder of Bukwang with 11% stake and will jointly manage the company business. -The transaction will combine Bukwang’s R&D capabilities in pharmaceutical & bio industry and OCI’s global business capabilities. -Bukwang CEO Hee-Won Yoo “with this investment, Bukwang has established the foundation to become a global pharma”.
Bukwang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (“Bukwang”) announced that its largest shareholder and its affiliated persons have entered into a stock purchase agreement with OCI Company Ltd. (“OCI”), a company specialized in energy & chemical business, to sell approximately 7.73 million shares for a total proceeds of 146 billion KRW.
Through this investment, OCI will be the largest shareholder of Bukwang with 11% stake, and will jointly manage with Bukwang’s leadership for important business decisions such as new product development, investment, large-scale borrowing etc.
Since 2018 Bukwang and OCI jointly manage a company ‘BNO BIO’ together. With previous cooperation exposure, OCI have confirmed Bukwang’s R&D capability and potential in new drug development and further determined Bukwang as a key for OCI future growth strategy.
Bukwang is a well known R&D focused pharmaceutical company that embraces open innovation and has demonstrated significant achievements through multiple setups such as joint venture establishment, research collaboration, and M&A.
Bukwang is one of the first companies that received GMP certificate in Korea. It has been designated as an innovative pharmaceutical company as a result of its activities in pharmaceutical R&D, manufacturing, and sales & marketing. Through open innovation, Bukwang has expanded its R&D pipeline especially in neurosciences and Oncology. Today, Bukwang has also established a global network through both direct and indirect investment activity in more than 30 companies in the US and Europe.
From this investment, strong synergy is expected through a combination of Bukwang’s expertise in pharmaceutical and bio industry and OCI’s strategic capability that have brought the company to become a global leader in polysilicon production as well as financial strength. Bukwang is expected to accelerate its growth by increasing the size of strategic investments and expanding the pipeline through this opportunity.
OCI is a global leader in polysilicon, an essential material for solar energy production. OCI is the first who developed polysilicon in 2008 and it has the technology to produce more than 11N purity polysilicon that are suitable for semiconductors. Additionally, OCI has accumulated experiences in chemical, petrochemical, agrochemicals, and reagent businesses. The company recently expanded its business portfolio into advanced material and environmental materials such as semiconductors and secondary batteries.
Hee Won Yoo, CEO of Bukwang stated, “this investment is an outcome of combining Bukwang’s R&D capabilities and expertise with OCI’s global know-how and financial strength. It is important that the foundation for growth to global pharma is now established together with OCI.” |