Daewoong Pharmaceutical said it has already licensed out three drug candidates this year, totaling more than 1 trillion won ($749.6 million).

The deals come as the government emphasizes fostering and exporting the pharmaceutical bio industry to overcome the global economic downturn and industry investment reduction since last year.

Most recently, Daewoong signed a licensing deal to transfer the rights to the global development and commercialization of DWP213388, an oral autoimmune treatment drug candidate, to Vitalli Bio for $477 million, excluding royalties.

The deal was made during President Yoon Suk Yeol's state visit to the U.S. last month.

DWP213388 is a first-in-class drug that can inhibit the dual target of Bruton's Tyrosine Kinase (BTK) and Interleukin-2-inducible T-cell Kinase (ITK), target proteins involved in the activation of immune cells such as B-cells and T-cells. The agreement also includes an option to transfer two new drug candidates being developed by Daewoong.

In January, Daewoong signed a $336 million worth technology export agreement with CS Pharmaceuticals of the United Kingdom for PRS (Prolyl-tRNA Synthetase) and Bersiporocin, a candidate for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, for the Greater China area.

Bersiporocin is a new drug that received phase 2 clinical approval and Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last year.

Daewoong also signed a contract to export technology to Latin America for Envlo, a diabetes drug based on SGLT-2 inhibitors that have just been launched in Korea. The contract was worth $84.36 million, including technology fees.

"Through a series of large-scale technology export contracts since the beginning of the year, Daewoong Pharmaceutical is being recognized as a new drug development powerhouse in the global pharma-bio market," Daewoong CEO Jeon Seung-ho said.

Korean biopharmaceutical shows R&D prowess with multiple license deals

The pharmaceutical industry's licensing deals, which plummeted last year, are rebounding this year, led by Daewoong.

According to the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association (KPBMA), the domestic pharmaceutical industry announced licensing deals amounting to 47 trillion won from 2017 to last year, and the value of drug exports has grown by 25 percent annually over the past five years.

In 2021, technology exports reached a record high, with Korean companies logging 13.37 trillion won in licensing fees, excluding undisclosed contracts.

However, the total value of technology exports plummeted last year. While pharmaceutical exports grew 24 percent to 10.73 trillion won in 2021, technology exports plummeted by more than half to 6.72 trillion won.

Despite such setbacks last year, eight companies have already succeeded in licensing out their drug candidates this year, raising high hopes among industry watchers.

According to the technology export status compiled by the KPBMA, as of April 30, GC Cell, Isu Abxis, GenKOre, and HK inno.N, Daewoong Pharmaceutical, Cha Biotech, Onconic Therapeutics, and Biorchestra have licensed out their drug candidates to global pharmaceutical companies.

In terms of the single total contract value, Bioorchestra topped the list with a joint research and option agreement worth $861 million with a global pharmaceutical company.

However, in terms of the total contract value, Daewoong ranked first as its three contract values totaled $897.36 million.