Hanmi showcases at JPM its contract production capabilities for COVID-19 vaccines as South Korea prepares to bring in candidates from several global developers, while LG Chem highlights progress across multiple pipeline projects.

Days after buying Kymab, Sanofi partners with Israel’s Biond on IO candidate targeting ILT2. Gilead again tackles functional cure of hepatitis B in alliance with Vir.

Vir believes its single antibody will be effective against rising mutant forms of COVID-19. Phase III data from two ongoing trials are expected in the first quarter.

Although there weren’t many large-scale partnerships as in previous years, Korean biopharma firms were involved in a broad range of deals across diverse therapeutic areas in 2020, with ADCs, oncology and domestic alliances emerging as key trends.