Notable new drug approvals in South Korea last year included Pfizer’s Tukysa, Genentech’s Columvi and BeiGene’s Tevimbra, but the tally did not include any domestically-originated products. Alzheimer’s disease therapy lecanemab may be on the horizon this year.

The South Korean biotech space has been marked by multiple positive R&D developments and pipeline and partnering progress in recent months, more than outweighing some other setbacks for the rapidly developing sector. 

With Leclaza as a foothold, the next couple of years will be crucial for Yuhan’s ambition to become a top 50 global pharma firm. R&D president Yeul Hong Kim shares how he intends to shape the leading Korean company's efforts to compete with its global rivals.

Aside from mixed earnings at major South Korean pharma firms, recent updates across the local industry have included the ongoing leadership dispute at Hanmi Group, the approval and reimbursement of Yuhan’s lazertinib as a first-line NSCLC therapy and the US approval of GC Biopharma’s immuno-globulin product.