A single tech export brings in 11 times the annual revenue

ABL secures ₩90 billion in upfront payment through tech export… ranks in Top 5

Hanmi Pharmaceutical ranks No.1 in signing the largest tech export deal

SK Biopharm’s cenobamate ranks No.1 among those still in effect

The biotechnology company ABL Bio signed a mega-deal and secured 11 times its annual revenue through a single license agreement.

 

Its upfront payment by itself ranks in the top 5 among the technology export deals made by pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies in Korea.

 

When excluding the ones that have returned the rights, ABL Bio’s deal is the third-largest in upfront payments.

 

According to the Financial Supervisory Service on the 12th, ABL Bio signed a license agreement with Genzyme for ABL301, a bispecific antibody candidate for the treatment of Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases.

 

Genzyme is a fully owned subsidiary of Sanofi.

 

Under the agreement, after ABL Bio completes the preclinical and Phase I clinical trial for ABL301, Sanofi will be responsible for further clinical development and receive worldwide exclusive development and commercialization rights to ABL301.

 

ABL will receive up to $1.06 billion (approx.

 

₩1.3 trillion) under the agreement.

 

ABL will first receive $75 million (approx.

 

₩90 billion) in upfront payment with no obligation for return and will be eligible to receive up to $45 million in near-term milestones, as well as up to $985 million (approx.

 

₩1.2 trillion) based on the achievement of predefined development, regulatory and commercialization milestones.

 

ABL301 is a novel drug candidate that inhibits aggregation of α-synuclein, which causes Parkinson’s disease.

 

Through the agreement, ABL Bio secured an amount 11 times that of its sales revenue of ₩8.1 billion in 2020 through a single technology export.

 

ABL Bio’s ₩8.1 billion in 2020 were also profits made from technology transfer.

 

ABL Bio posted sales of ₩1.3 billion and ₩4 billion in 2018 and 2019, respectively, both of which were also profits made from technology transfers.

 

The upfront payment secured by ABL Bio this time ranks the company in the Top 5 among all technology exports made by domestic pharmaceutical companies.

 

The amount shows how highly Sanofi considers the commercial value of ABL301.

 

Hanmi Pharmaceutical holds the largest record of upfront payment made through technology export deals in Korea.

 

In November 2015, Hanmi Pharmaceutical had entered into a license agreement with Sanofi to transfer the license of its 3 new diabetes drugs (Efpeglenatide·long-acting insulin·Efpeglenatide+long-acting insulin).

 

The upfront payment, which was first set at 400 million euros and later reduced to 240 million, still ranks first among all upfront payments made for technology exports in Korea.

 

Hanmi Pharmaceutical’s deal with Janssen for its long-acting diabetes-obesity drug ranks second in upfront payments ($150 million).

 

Third is SK Biopharm’s epilepsy treatment cenobamate, which has received $100 million in upfront payment upon signing an agreement with Able Therapeutics.

 

Fourth is again Hanmi Pharmaceutical, which had received $80 million through a licensing agreement with Genentech for its RAF inhibitor in 2016.

 

ABL Bio’s ABL301 ranked fifth with $75 million in upfront payments.

 

One unfortunate aspect is that 5 of the top 10 items that received the most in upfront payments were returned.

 

In December 2015, Sanofi had discontinued development and returned the rights for the long-acting insulin among the 3 candidate drugs it acquired from Hanmi for its Quantum Project.

 

Also, the agreement was then changed so that Hanmi develops the long-acting insulin combo (long-acting insulin+ efpeglenatide) for Sanofi’s acquisition in the future, but Sanofi did not take over in the end.

 

The rights for Hanmi Pharmaceutical’s new candidate drug for obesity/diabetes 'JNJ-64565111,’ which accrued the second-most amount in upfront payment, has also been returned in September 2019.

 

The license for Hanmi’s ‘olmutinib’ was also returned in 2016, and the immune disease treatment that was handed to Eli Lily was also returned in 2019.

 

Dong-A ST’s partner company also gave up the development of Dong-A ST’s Mer tyrosine kinase inhibitor (Mer TKI).

 

Among technology export agreements still in effect, SK Biopharm’s cenobamate has received the most amount in upfront payment with $100 million.

 

ABL Bio’s ABL301 ranks third among technology exports that are still in effect.