PharmaBoardroom

Rock-bottom prices, regulatory red tape, and intense competition from Asia have made life difficult for Europe’s generics and biosimilar producers. Yet a handful of companies are not just surviving this squeeze but thriving in it – through diversification, geographic focus, R&D intensity, or sheer scientific specialisation.

Yeul Hong Kim, R&D President of Yuhan, discusses the company’s transformation from a traditional Korean pharmaceutical business into an increasingly global innovator. He outlines Yuhan’s open innovation strategy, pipeline focus, investment in new modalities and AI-driven discovery, and its approach to global partnerships. Kim also discusses Korea’s pharmaceutical landscape, pricing pressures, and Yuhan’s ambition to become a leading global pharmaceutical company.

Rock-bottom prices, regulatory red tape, and Asian manufacturers’ scale advantages have made life difficult for Europe’s generics and biosimilar producers, as this website has documented extensively. Yet a handful of companies are not just surviving this squeeze but thriving in it – through diversification, geographic focus, R&D intensity, or sheer scientific specialisation.

Daniel Camardo is the President of Immedica Pharma US Inc. (Immedica), the US affiliate/subsidiary of Immedica Pharma AB, a Sweden-based rare disease company that entered the American market in 2024. Bringing together his experience building Astellas’s US presence and leading rare disease commercialization at Horizon, Camardo joined Immedica to lead its North American launch.

Dr Gertrud Demmler of SBK, one of Germany's largest statutory health insurance funds, describe the EUR 18 billion funding gap facing the country's health system, what the July 2026 GKV Contribution Rate Stabilisation Act does and doesn't fix, why consolidation among health insurance funds is set to continue, and the case for outcome-based rather than input-based reimbursement.

Chinese drugmakers are increasingly looking past the NMPA toward approvals in the EU, US, and Australia. Daphne Smyth of Veristat has watched this shift from the front row, guiding sponsors through the data gaps, bridging studies, and regulatory quirks that stand between a China-developed drug and a Western marketing authorisation. She spoke with DIA’s Global Forum about what’s driving the push, where it’s working, and the geopolitical undercurrents that could shape what comes next.

Gilmore O'Neill, CEO of Editas Medicine, reflects on the company's evolution from CRISPR pioneer to focused in vivo therapeutics developer. Two years into a strategic pivot, O'Neill shares the reasoning behind discontinuing the reni-cel cell therapy program in favor of lipid nanoparticle-delivered gene editing, and how EDIT-401, targeting severe hyperlipidemia, embodies that shift.

Avril Daly brings a rare dual perspective to Europe’s rare disease and ophthalmology landscape: as CEO of Retina International, she represents patients living with retinal diseases, and as President of EURORDIS she advocates for the wider rare disease community across Europe — all while living with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) herself.

Neuroscience is back. After a litany of divestments and scale backs in the 2010s, diseases of the brain are now the second-most-funded area in biotech, behind only cancer. However, this remains a complex and challenging field, leading neuroscience biotechs – three of which are profiled below – to develop very different strategies. The resurgence of neuroscience investment over the past five years is partly down to a better technological toolset.

James Park discusses Lotte Biologics' strategy to establish itself as a global CDMO through dual manufacturing hubs in the US and Korea, advanced biologics and ADC capabilities, and a strong service-oriented culture. He outlines the company's expansion plans, technological differentiation, and support for Korea's emerging biotech ecosystem, while reflecting on cross-cultural leadership and the country's growing role in global biopharmaceutical manufacturing.