Celltrion Holdings eyes Nasdaq IPO by early 2025: chairman

South Korean biosimilar giant Celltrion Group is planning to debut on the Nasdaq market by early 2025, founder and Chairman Seo Jung-jin said at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference held in San Francisco last week.    

The group is in talks with some Wall Street investors, seeking to list its holding firm Celltrion Holdings Co. on the Nasdaq between the end of 2024 and early 2025, said the chairman.

The drugmaker will create healthcare funds by using 5 trillion won ($3.8 billion) of the capital secured in the initial public offering process, he added. The company will attract strategic investors as managers of the funds, aimed to expand with a combined 100 trillion won, he added.

Seo owns a 98% stake in Celltrion Holdings. His ownership is expected to fall to around 60% if the holding firm issues new shares to draw investment for the IPO.

Last August, the chairman said the group will consider listing the holding firm if necessary, after it completes the merger of three affiliates – drug developer Celltrion Inc., overseas sales and marketing firm Celltrion Healthcare Co. and domestic distribution unit Celltrion Pharm Inc.

The group merged Celltrion Inc. and Celltrion Healthcare Co. last December. It aims to integrate Celltrion Pharm Inc. with the merged entity by around July of this year.

The group, aiming for a sales goal of 12 trillion won by 2030, is planning to expand market dominance by strengthening transparency through simplifying trading structures and improving cost of sales, a Celltrion Inc. official said last year. 

Write to Dae-Kyu Ahn and Yoo-Rim Kim at powerzanic@hankyung.com

Jihyun Kim edited this article.