Korea Investment Management Lists New 'ACE K-Bio KOSDAQ Active' ETF

First KOSDAQ Product in Six Years Since 2020
Approximately 20 Bio Companies with Solid Fundamentals Included

Korea Investment Management announced on July 21 that the ACE K-Bio KOSDAQ Active ETF will be newly listed.

The ACE K-Bio KOSDAQ Active ETF is the first KOSDAQ investment ETF launched by Korea Investment Management in six years. Since the 2020s, the only KOSDAQ investment product introduced by the company was the ACE KOSDAQ150 (KINDEX KOSDAQ150) ETF.

The ACE K-Bio KOSDAQ Active ETF invests in the domestic bio industry, which is undergoing qualitative growth. According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, domestic biopharmaceutical exports in the first half of this year increased by 15.3% compared to the previous year. The export value for the first half, at 4.5 billion dollars, is the highest ever recorded. In addition, during the past three years, the annual average export growth has exceeded 20%.

The ETF’s portfolio will consist of around 20 stocks. The constituent stocks will be selected from KOSDAQ-listed companies based on criteria such as the potential for technology export, alignment with global pipeline trends, and competitiveness in clinical data. The benchmark index is the KRX K-AI BioTech KOSDAQ Index.

The fund will be managed by Songyi Park, head of investment strategy. After graduating from Korea University College of Pharmacy and earning a master's degree from the same graduate school, Songyi Park is recognized as a bio industry expert. She plans to use both qualitative and quantitative analysis to select bio companies with solid fundamentals. Stock weightings will be determined by comprehensively factoring in technology transfer experience, event visibility, and liquidity for each company.

Park commented, "Currently, the global pharma bio market is being reappraised based on the value and commercial performance of novel drug pipelines. Among them, K-Bio has entered a unique long-term high-growth trajectory, driven by the explosive increase in global healthcare demand," adding, "Now is the optimal time to move away from a portfolio focused on large-cap stocks and instead concentrate investments in core KOSDAQ biotech companies that demonstrate value through technology export and successful clinical outcomes."

She also explained, "Given the high volatility characteristic of individual companies in the bio sector, professional active management, rather than simple index tracking, is essential. By utilizing the ACE K-Bio KOSDAQ Active ETF, investors can selectively invest in competitive and promising stocks based on our research."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.