[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] SEOUL – DXVX announced on July 30 that it has signed a ₩300 billion (approx. USD 220 million) co-development and technology licensing agreement with a U.S.-based biotech company to advance its mRNA cancer vaccine program.
Under the deal, DXVX will grant the partner exclusive global rights to its proprietary mRNA cancer vaccine patents. In return, DXVX will receive:
Milestone payments totaling around ₩300 billion throughout development stages
Sales milestones of 10% or more for at least 15 years after commercialization
DXVX emphasized that there is no upfront payment, but early-stage milestone payments are built into the structure. A company representative said:
“Our mRNA cancer vaccine is in late-stage preclinical efficacy testing. We expect to receive the first milestone payment by late this year or Q1 2025.”
Even after licensing, DXVX will continue to lead R&D, including preclinical and clinical trials (Phase 1–3) and manufacturing, while the U.S. partner will handle global regulatory filings, sales, and commercialization.
The vaccine is part of DXVX’s proprietary pipeline and has shown superior anti-cancer efficacy in preclinical animal studies compared to global competitors. It incorporates DXVX’s long-term room-temperature storage mRNA platform technology, providing a significant technological advantage.
The U.S. partner is described as a biotech company with expertise in RNA-based therapeutics and multiple platform technologies. This agreement follows initial partnering discussions held at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference and Biotech Showcase in January.
Alphabiz Reporter Paul Lee(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
