Shares of South Korea’s Sam Chun Dang Pharm (SCD) have soared more than 75% this month as investors rally behind the company’s pill version of weight-loss injectables, propelling chairman Yoon Dae-in into billionaire status.
Yoon, who will turn 76 in March, directly and indirectly controls 34% of SCD’s shares and holds a minority stake in OPTUS Pharmaceutical, SCD’s eye-drop manufacturing division. Forbes estimates his net worth at $2.1 billion.
Headquartered in Hyangnam, south of Seoul, SCD develops active pharmaceutical ingredients for conditions such as dry-eye disease and high blood pressure. The company is also innovating in drug delivery, including its S-Pass technology, which converts injectable medicines into oral pills.
On Thursday, SCD announced a partnership with Japanese pharmaceutical company Daiichi Sankyo to jointly develop and commercialize its weight-loss pill in Japan. While financial terms remain undisclosed, SCD shares have jumped nearly 40% since the announcement. Seoul-based Korea Investment & Securities recently named SCD a “recommended stock of the week,” citing S-Pass’s potential as a delivery platform for oral obesity and diabetes therapies.
SCD has also developed a microsphere-based long-acting injectable that slowly releases medication over several months. On January 7, the company inked a deal potentially worth up to $2 billion for the exclusive right to market a long-acting injectable version of leuprorelin, a prostate cancer treatment developed by Japan’s Takeda, in the U.S. SCD will receive approximately $100 million upfront and in milestone payments, with remaining profits split evenly with Takeda.
The company reported a 6.3% year-over-year revenue increase, reaching 165.5 billion won ($113 million) in the first nine months of 2025. Net income surged 76% to 70 billion won over the same period.
Founded in 1943 during the Japanese occupation as Chosun Sam Chun Dang, SCD was acquired by Yoon in 1986 after he completed his MBA at Long Island University. Using family funds, Yoon bought the company, which went public on Korea’s Kosdaq in 2000, raising 9.1 billion won in its IPO.
Yoon, who studied business at Seoul National University, served as co-CEO alongside his son-in-law Chun In-seok until 2022; Chun remains CEO today.
With Yoon joining the ranks of South Korean biotech billionaires, the landscape now includes figures such as Seo Jung-jin ($8.5B, Celltrion), Park Soon-jae ($2.7B, Alteogen), Chung Yong-ji ($2.1B, Caregen), Lee Sang-hoon ($1.6B, ABL Bio), Jung Sang-soo ($1.2B, PharmaResearch), and Hyuntae Kim ($1B, Voronoi).
