Two biotech and three med-tech companies are slated for Kosdaq debuts this month, signaling a potential rebound for Korea financings in 2026. Kanaph Therapeutics Inc. will open with a ₩40 billion (US$26.99 million) raise and Imbiologics Corp. will debut with ₩52 billion. Additionally, Mezoo Co. Ltd., Cosmo Robotics Co. Ltd. and Recensmedical Inc. will launch IPOs.
The K-health MIRAE Initiative, also known as Korean ARPA-H, announced plans to allocate about ₩162 billion (US$110 million) in nine new projects over the next five years, with a focus on strengthening national health security.
Taiwan plans to invest NT$24 billion (US$752 million) over four years to bolster national biosecurity, expand domestic pharmaceutical production and safeguard against global supply chain volatility.
Innovacell Inc. launched a ¥14.16 billion (US$91.2 million) stock sale on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Feb. 24, ending a near two-year lull of biotech listings in Japan while signaling a dynamic year ahead for cell-based therapeutics.
Japan is backing conditional approvals of Amchepry (raguneprocel, Sumitomo Pharma Co. Ltd./Racthera Co. Ltd.) and Reheart (Cuorips Inc.), positioning them to become the world’s first induced pluripotent stem cell-derived (iPSC) therapies to receive regulatory clearance.
Insight Lifetech Co. Ltd. listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange’s STAR market via an unprofitable biotech track reinstated last year, with the Feb. 5 IPO raising ¥998.64 million (US$143.93 million).
The sea anemone Stichodactyla helianthus, which carpets the Caribbean seafloor, may hold the key to eliminating the senescent cells that survive cancer therapy. A collaboration led by Spanish scientists across several international research centers has discovered a new type of toxin that selectively eliminates senescent cancer cells.
ADEL Inc. closed a year-end licensing deal worth up to $1.04 billion with Sanofi SA for ADEL-Y01, a specific tau-targeting Alzheimer’s disease drug candidate in a U.S. phase I study.
South Korean researchers led by Lee In-suk of Yonsei University have reported the most complete oral microbiome catalog to date, with more than 72,000 genomes. Detailed in Cell Host & Microbe on Nov. 12, 2025, the database is expected to serve as a universal platform for academia and enable “precision microbiome medicine” for the industry, Lee told BioWorld.
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. agreed to codevelop and commercialize up to three of Innovent Biologics Co. Ltd.’s immuno-oncology (I-O) and antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) candidates with the signing of a $11.4 billion deal, including $1.2 billion paid up front.