Korea's Cha Bio Group to expand overseas real estate business

Cha Bio Group, consisting of Cha Biotech and Cha Vaccine Research Institute as its subsidiaries, has announced its expansion into the real estate investment business. The South Korean health and biomedicine group has signed a business agreement with an asset management company IGIS Asset Management for an Asian life science real estate investment project.

The plan is to offer services to various companies ranging from biotechnology ventures in the Asia-Pacific region to multinational drug companies. This will be achieved through the utilization of existing R&D facilities, manufacturing plants and medical centers, as well as the development of new ones for investment purposes.

The two companies will collaborate to establish and run the new company. Cha Bio Group's research capabilities and experience in overseas network operations will be combined with IGIS' real estate investment expertise to create synergies.

The newly established investment company intends to raise $650 million of funds based on assets under management to purchase, develop and operate real estate properties in major locations at home and abroad. In this process, Cha Bio Group will provide consulting services based on its experience in establishing contract development and manufacturing plants overseas and operating medical centers.

Simultaneously, IGIS plans to expand its base in Asia by discovering promising overseas real estate properties.

Write to Jae-Young Han at jyhan@hankyung.com