Prestige Biopharma IDC Opens New Innovative Discovery Center in Busan

Prestige Biopharma IDC Opens New Innovative Discovery Center in Busan

Prestige Biopharma Group announced that Prestige Biopharma IDC (CEO: Sang-Seok Koh), the group’s R&D control tower and a wholly owned subsidiary of Prestige Biopharma (Chairwoman: Soyeon Park), has completed construction of its new headquarters in Myeongji International New City, Busan, and officially held the opening ceremony for the Innovative Discovery Center (IDC) on the 13th.

The ceremony took place at the ROA Hall within the new IDC building and was attended by approximately 300 guests, including Chairwoman Soyeon Park, executives and employees of Prestige Biopharma Group, as well as representatives from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Busan Metropolitan Government, Gangseo District Office, and other related institutions.

Prestige Biopharma IDC is the first and largest biopharmaceutical R&D center in Busan. Construction began in December 2021 on a 31,417 m² site and was completed after three years, resulting in a six-story building with one underground floor. In September of last year, the facility was also designated as an Advanced Investment Zone by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and managed by the Busan Metropolitan Government—making it the only pharmaceutical and biotechnology company selected under this designation with a single building facility.

With the opening of the new Innovative Discovery Center, one of the largest biopharmaceutical research facilities in Korea, Prestige Biopharma Group plans to further strengthen its focus on developing first-in-class antibody therapeutics. The company expects the new research environment to accelerate the development of its pipeline, including the pancreatic cancer antibody therapeutic PBP1510, which has already entered clinical trials, the preclinical-stage candidate PBP1710, as well as next-generation modalities such as antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). In total, 16 antibody therapeutic candidates are currently under development.

The new facility also features an open innovation space on the second floor designed to foster collaboration with universities, biotech companies, and research institutions. This initiative aims to create synergies in joint drug development while significantly reducing development costs. By leveraging IDC’s cell line development platform, the company plans to build a collaborative ecosystem and position IDC as a global hub for innovative drug development.

Approximately 30% of IDC’s workforce consists of Ph.D.-level researchers who lead the institute’s research programs. The center will also establish structured collaboration programs with external academic leaders and experts to advance its drug development pipeline.

In his congratulatory remarks, Busan Deputy Mayor Lee Jun-seung stated, “We hope that the completion of Korea’s largest innovative biopharmaceutical research institute will serve as a catalyst for the growth of Busan’s bio industry on the global stage. The city will actively support collaborative research among academia, industry, and research institutions through the open innovation labs at IDC.”

Sang-Seok Koh, CEO of Prestige Biopharma IDC, said, “IDC takes pride in being one of the leading antibody biopharmaceutical development groups in Korea, having discovered the PAUF biomarker associated with pancreatic cancer and advancing its antibody therapeutic PBP1510 into clinical development. With this new research environment, we aim to grow into a global hub for innovative drug development.”

Meanwhile, as part of the opening ceremony, Prestige Biopharma IDC hosted its first international symposium to mark the institute’s new phase of growth, held over two days on the 13th and 14th.

Source: PAX TV (https://www.paxetv.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=216651)