Novartis agrees to invest US$1 mln in S. Korean firm

SEOUL, Oct. 9 (Yonhap) -- The local unit of Novartis AG, Switzerland's No. 2 drugmaker, agreed to invest US$1 million in a South Korean biotechnology start-up, a government trade agency said Thursday.

Under the agreement, Novartis Korea will put the fund into Daejeon-based
Pharmapcine, the Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency said in a statement.
Daejeon is 164 kilometers south of Seoul.
The deal is part of Novartis' plan to invest $20 million in South Korea over the
next five years to promote innovation in the nation's biotechnology sector.
A Seoul-based public relations agent for Novartis Korea declined to elaborate on
the deal, saying the company will release a press statement later in the day.
Last week, Novartis signed a preliminary contract to buy an unspecified amount of
stake in a local cancer-treatment start-up, Neomics Inc., for $1 million.
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