Prestige Biopharma acquired by Korean depository, in sign of possible IPO

THE Singapore-registered entity of Prestige Biopharma, a biopharmaceuticals firm headquartered in the city-state, has been fully acquired by the Korea Securities Depository (KSD), according to a Dec 8 regulatory filing posted by intelligence platform VentureCap Insights.

This could be a possible sign of an initial public offering on the Korean stock exchange for the near-unicorn. The Business Times has reached out to Prestige Biopharma for comment.

In a May 2020 report, news outlet The Korea Herald reported that Prestige Biopharma had filed for a preliminary review for listing on the Korea's main bourse.

Founded in 2015, Prestige Biopharma specialises in the development of antibody therapeutics, such as biosimilars - copies of certain types of drugs that can treat diseases.

According to VentureCap's data, which is pulled from regulatory filings, the KSD has acquired all 9.2 million shares from Prestige Biopharma's shareholders via a secondary sale.

The company was last valued at US$826.9 million, after raising US$71.5 million in a Series B round, VentureCap data shows.

Its Series B investors included Singapore family office Octava, Korea's KB Financial Group, and the entities Vulcan Venture Investment and CQ Capital. Octava had also invested in the firm's earlier rounds.

Before the sale to KSD, Prestige Biopharma's chief executive Lisa Park held 3.3 million shares - or a stake of about 35.9 per cent - in the company.