Boryung, traditionally known for its pharma business, said it would establish a joint venture (JV) with Axiom Space, a U.S.-based space infrastructure developer, in Korea to invest in healthcare in space.

Boryung CEO Jay Kim presents the company's future vision during the company's shareholders' meeting held at the Boryung headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, Tuesday.
Boryung CEO Jay Kim presents the company's future vision during the company's shareholders' meeting held at the Boryung headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul, Tuesday.

"We agreed to establish a JV with Axiom Space on Monday," Boryung CEO Jay Kim said at the company's annual general shareholder's meeting on Tuesday. "We have yet to discuss the specific business direction, but we will conduct joint research and development on all businesses related to low-Earth orbit in Korea, with the possibility of further expanding the business outside Korea in the future."

The two companies plan to finalize the establishment of the joint venture after a discussion for two months, Kim added.

Kim's announcement comes after Boryung has recently been proactive in the space business. 

Boryung, along with Axiom and Starburst Aerospace, hosted the Care In Space Challenge last year, which is a collaborative space startup incubation program that awards winning companies an equity investment of $100,000 and admission into Starburst's 13-week accelerator program.

The company also invested $50 million in Axiom Space in December 2022.

During the annual general shareholder's meeting, Kim also expressed his intention to increase the company's presence in the space sector.

"The vision to start our space business started with me asking NASA if a sick person can go to space," Kim said. "The NASA official said they do not know as they had never sent a sick person into space."

Kim stressed that his company decided to focus on securing two parts -- the technology needed for human survival in space and the infrastructure for drug research and development in space.

"To secure the technology needed for human survival in space, we decided to hold the Care In Space Challenge last year, and to secure the infrastructure for drug research and development in space, we invested in Axiom," Kim said. "This year, the Care In Space Challenge will be elevated to the next level and become Human In Space, which will be held in the second half of this year, and we will continue to build partnerships with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Axiom to create a healthcare ecosystem in outer space."

Also, to secure technologies for human survival in space and discussions are underway to ensure our own space within Axiom's new station, Kim added.

Kim asked shareholders to have faith and patience in the company's space business as the business would pay off.

He also talked about the pharmaceutical business, the company's core revenue source.

Boryung sales and operating profit in 2022 reached 760.5 billion won, and 56.6 billion won ($581.9 million and $43.3 million), up 21 percent and 37 percent compared to 2021.

However, even with the growth rate of the Korean prescription drug market staying at 8-9 percent in 2022, Boryung's growth was remarkable, Kim added.

He said the absolute number of patients drives the steady growth of the Korean pharmaceutical industry due to an aging population, and Boryung, with its portfolio of businesses aligned with this demographic shift, will continue to grow.

"While we may not be able to continue to grow 20-30 percent every year, we will continue to strive to outperform the market," Kim said. "The company will continue to expand its Legacy Brand Acquisition (LBA) strategy, and we are constantly looking for LBA products that can help us grow our pharmaceutical business, and we will actively pursue acquisitions as opportunities arise."

The company will also continue to explore opportunities to expand our business globally based on our global-level production know-how and understanding of the global supply chain of pharmaceuticals through LBA, Kim added.

 

 

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