LIVZON Group to Acquire 64.81% Stake in Vietnam's Imexpharm for RMB 1.587 Billion to Accelerate International Expansion

On May 22, Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. announced its plan to acquire the Vietnamese listed pharmaceutical company Imexpharm Corporation (“IMP”). This overseas acquisition will be carried out by its wholly-owned overseas subsidiary, LIAN SGP. The signed “Framework Agreement” disclosed that LIAN SGP intends to acquire the shares of IMP held collectively by the seller, SK Group, and its subsidiaries.64.81% Equity Interest, the proposed equity purchase price to be paid is573.08 billion Vietnamese dong (approximately RMB 1.587 billion)，Accounting for 11.45% of the Company’s latest audited net assets attributable to shareholders.

The announcement stated that, based on the average market capitalization over 30 trading days on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange, IMPMarket capitalization of approximately $269 million（(approximately RMB 1.937 billion). This transaction shall be completed within nine months from the date of signing this Agreement, or on a later date as mutually agreed in writing by both parties.

Upon completion of the transaction, IMP will become a subsidiary included in the Company’s consolidated financial statements, supporting Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. in further expanding its overseas markets and advancing its long-term strategy for internationalization and sustainable development in the pharmaceutical sector.

The target of this transaction, IMP, is a long-established Vietnamese pharmaceutical company founded in 1977, primarily engaged in the research and development, production, and sales of pharmaceutical products. In 2024, IMP generated revenue of RMB 696 million and net profit of RMB 88.8302 million. In the first quarter of 2025, it achieved revenue of RMB 186 million and net profit of RMB 20.6144 million. As of the end of March 2025, IMP’s net assets amounted to RMB 622 million. IMP’s product portfolio mainly includesincluding antibiotics and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular drugsetc., demonstrating strong synergy with Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc.’s existing products and business operations.

Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. is primarily engaged in the research and development, manufacturing, and sales of pharmaceutical products. Its product portfolio covers formulations, active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and intermediates, as well as diagnostic reagents and equipment, with a leading position in China in the field of microsphere formulations. The company’s products focus on therapeutic areas such as the gastrointestinal tract, assisted reproduction, and neuropsychiatry. The APIs and intermediates it produces include mevastatin, acarbose, phenylalanine, and vancomycin hydrochloride.

Whether in production, distribution channels, or partnerships, “localization” is the key word for Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc.’s expansion into the Southeast Asian market.At the investor exchange meeting held last month, Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. disclosed that, in terms of its internationalization strategy, the company’s products have already covered multiple markets including Southeast Asia, South America, the Middle East, and Africa, with sales progress achieved in some newly developed regions.

In July 2024, Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. joined hands with a subsidiary of Kalbe Holdings to establish a joint venture in Indonesia for manufacturing operations, strengthening its localized production footprint. The company also commenced the construction of an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) plant, initiating its localized and international production strategy. This move is expected to reduce costs, accelerate market response, enhance penetration in European and American markets, and drive international expansion.

At a deeper level, the expansion into overseas markets represents Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc.’s attempt to identify a second growth engine amid pressure on revenue and a slowdown in net profit growth, particularly in the Southeast Asian market, where entry barriers are relatively low and the innovative pharmaceutical sector remains far from saturated.In 2024, Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc. achieved a revenue of RMB 11.812 billion, representing a year-on-year decrease of 4.97%; the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was RMB 2.061 billion, marking a year-on-year increase of 5.50%. In the first quarter of 2025, the company recorded a revenue of RMB 3.181 billion, down by 1.92% year on year, while the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company reached RMB 637 million, up by 4.75% year on year.

Among them, in 2024Overseas revenue reached RMB 1.724 billion, a year-on-year increase of 9.69%, accounting for approximately 14.59% of total revenue. Among this, export revenue from active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and intermediates amounted to RMB 1.668 billion, representing a year-on-year growth of 7.93%.

Notably, the seller in this transaction is SK Group, South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate and the 92nd-ranked company on the 2023 Fortune Global 500 list, with its three core business pillars being energy and chemicals, information and communications technology (ICT) and semiconductors, and marketing and services.

In the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors, SK Group owns subsidiaries such as SK Bioscience, SK Biopharmaceuticals, and SK Pharmteco, covering the entire industry chain from R&D, manufacturing (CDMO), and market expansion to strategic investments. Its areas of involvement include small molecules, cell and gene therapies, radiopharmaceuticals, and vaccines.

In the U.S. market, SK Bioscience successfully commercialized cenobamate (brand name XCOPRI) through its U.S. subsidiary, SK Life Science.^®), indicated for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in adults. Its subsidiary, SK Chemicals, has maintained a long-standing partnership with AstraZeneca, encompassing COVID-19 vaccine production and, most recently, the combination antidiabetic medication Sidapvia. The latter was approved for marketing in South Korea in June 2023, with SK Chemicals providing manufacturing services to AstraZeneca through 2030.

Regarding the Southeast Asian market, SK bioscience has partnered with the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) of Thailand to strengthen the country’s vaccine development and manufacturing capabilities and establish a close, medium- to long-term collaboration. The plan includes transferring the manufacturing technology for SK bioscience’s proprietary cell-culture influenza vaccine to a GPO-owned facility for local production. Upon completion of the technology transfer, GPO will procure the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for the influenza vaccine from SK bioscience and seek marketing authorization from health regulatory authorities.

Aligned with Livzon Pharmaceutical Group Inc.’s localization strategy, investment and co-development by foreign enterprises present a rare opportunity to strengthen the pharmaceutical industry chain and develop the pharmaceutical industrial system in Southeast Asia, where R&D innovation and industrialization remain relatively underdeveloped. Meanwhile, governments across Southeast Asian countries generally support the growth of the pharmaceutical sector, encouraging foreign companies to make localized investments through policy, industrial, and technological incentives.

Previously, SK Group’s total investment in the Vietnamese market amounted to approximately $3.5 billion, butIndirect Investmentprimarily: SK Southeast Asia Investment Company once held a 6.1% stake in Vingroup, Vietnam’s largest conglomerate, and a 9.5% stake in Masan Group, Vietnam’s second-largest conglomerate.14.5% stake in Pharmacity, a large pharmacy chain group, and 54% stake in Imexpharm, a well-known pharmaceutical company, a 16.3% stake in retailer VinCommerce, and an undisclosed stake in BigPay, the fintech company under Malaysia’s AirAsia Group.

However, since 2022, there have been reports that SK Group is considering selling part of the assets of its investment arm, SK Southeast Asia Investment, in Vietnam and Malaysia to raise billions of dollars in response to deteriorating economic conditions.

In 2025, SK Group will launch three major liquefied natural gas (LNG) power generation projects in Vietnam, striving to develop a new energy hub focused on artificial intelligence, hydrogen energy, logistics, eco-friendly agriculture, and innovation. The Ecovance high-tech biodegradable materials plant project in Hai Phong City is SK Group’s venture in Viet-First Direct Investment Project, with a total investment of $500 million, including $100 million for Phase I, which officially commenced construction in May 2024.

As large corporate groups shift their investment strategies (such as moving from indirect to direct investment, or divesting from key sectors like the pharmaceutical market), Chinese large-scale pharmaceutical companies with greater vertical integration and a “localization” strategy may become key players in the Southeast Asian pharmaceutical market.

References:

Cailian Press: “Livzon Group Splashes Out 1.6 Billion to Acquire Vietnamese Company, Accelerating Overseas Market Expansion”