By Hyunjoo Jin and Joyce Lee
SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korean drug maker Samsung BioLogics said on Thursday it plans to separate the company into contract manufacturing and development companies, to help allay customer concerns about conflicts of interest between businesses.
BioLogics said in a regulatory filing that it will keep its drug contract manufacturing business while spinning off a business overseeing subsidiaries, including biosimilar drug developer Samsung Bioepis, as well as new investments.
The new spun-off company will tentatively be called Samsung Episholdings, the filing said.
“With the spin off, we expect to have more opportunities to explore next-generation growth drivers,” Samsung Bioepis said in a statement.
BioLogics counts tech giant Samsung Electronics and builder Samsung C&T as its major shareholders.
Kim Soo-hyun, head of research at DS Investment & Securities, said the deal may pave the way for Samsung C&T to sell some of its stake in the separated company and buy shares in Samsung Electronics, increasing the group’s grip on the conglomerate’s crown jewel.
Shares in BioLogics, which had risen 7.1% a day earlier after local media reports about a potential spin-off, rose as much as 8.2% on Thursday before paring gains.
Samsung C&T shares rose as much as 8.6% in early Thursday trade after the announcement.
(Reporting by Joyce Lee, Hyunjoo Jin and Jihoon Lee; Editing by Leslie Adler, Ed Davies)
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