Best Metabolic Diseases Companies in South Korea
The 38 best Metabolic Diseases companies in South Korea in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: D&D Pharmatech.
Ranked: Best Metabolic Diseases companies in South Korea
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Stage | Founder | Founded | Tech stack | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | D&D Pharmatech Developer of GLP-1-based therapeutics for metabolic disease treatment 42Patents top 19%Funding top 23%Innovation top 28%Moat top 32% All 9 signals ▾Patentstop 19% Fundingtop 23% Innovationtop 28% Moattop 32% Talentbottom 49% Globalbottom 42% Marketbottom 39% Fin. healthbottom 39% Techbottom 31% Patents: 92 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 62 filings since 2022 vs 27 in 2017-21 Funding: Raised $205M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 8 yrs (0.5/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 42/100 | $205M | 14 mo ago | Public | Seulki Lee Founder | 2014 | PHPGSAPApache HTTP Server+9 | 92 patents Targeted peptide drug conjugates using biotin/fatty‑acid moieties for oral delivery | — |
| 2 | Zymedi Developer of therapeutics for multiple diseases 29Patents top 31%Moat top 32%Innovation top 40%Funding top 41% All 9 signals ▾Patentstop 31% Moattop 32% Innovationtop 40% Fundingtop 41% Growthtop 45% Talentbottom 49% Globalbottom 35% Marketbottom 25% Techbottom 23% Patents: 31 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 28 filings since 2022 vs 3 in 2017-21 Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 4/10 · IP moat: 31 patents rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 29/100 | $30M | 39 mo ago | Series A | Nam Kwon CEO | 2019 | WordPressMySQLPHP+15 | 31 patents Lysyl‑tRNA synthetase 1 inhibitors and immune‑modulating peptides for inflammatory disease therapy | — |
| 3 | Olive Healthcare Provider of device for wellness and medical purpose | $10M | 80 mo ago | Series B | Sung Han Founder & CEO | 2016 | — | 60 patents Breast cancer imaging diagnostics using ultrasound/NIR and body composition analysis devices | — |
| 4 | KSB Tugen Developer of therapeutics for treating multiple diseases | $175K | 39 mo ago | Seed | Jeong Hyo Co-CEO | 2020 | — | 29 patents Therapeutic formulations for eye and muscle disorders using racetam derivatives. | — |
| 5 | AtoGen Developer of microbiome therapeutics for the treatment of various diseases | — | 47 mo ago | Seed | Jihee Kang CEO | 2012 | — | 52 patents Patents concentrated in health & consumer products | — |
| 6 | AM Sciences Developer of small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of Hepatitis-B | — | 103 mo ago | Seed | Peppi Prasit Co-Founder | 2016 | — | 40 patents Antiviral drug discovery targeting viral capsid assembly and related small‑molecule therapeutics. | — |
| 7 | KoBioLabs Developing microbiome therapeutics, companion diagnostics, and medicinal foods | — | 147 mo ago | Public | GwangPyo Ko CEO & President | 2014 | PHPGSAPApache HTTP Server+8 | 124 patents Probiotic and microbiome-derived therapeutic agents, including strains, vesicles, and glycolipids. | — |
| 8 | 3H Bio Developer of drugs targeting metabolic diseases | — | — | Funding Raised | Moonkyung Choe CEO | 2019 | — | 647 patents Biomedical polymers and devices for tissue regeneration, wound dressing, and orthopedic fixation | — |
Top 7 Metabolic Diseases companies in South Korea
#1
Public · Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do · founded 2014 · 16 employees$204.7Mraised▾
Developer of GLP-1-based therapeutics for metabolic disease treatment. It focuses on building on a robust foundation of proprietary peptide research and strategic collaborations. D&D Pharmatech is advancing a diverse pipeline of therapeutics for metabolic, fibrotic, and neurodegenerative diseases. The global biotech company’s umbrella structure comprises three U.S. subsidiaries, including Neuraly Inc, its clinical research arm responsible for conducting clinical trials for the company’s pipeline, including its dual agonist (GLP-1/glucagon) for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).
- Jun 2025Post IPO$10.8M
- Oct 2021Series C$51M
- Feb 2020Grant (prize money)—
- Aug 2019Series B$137.1M
#2
Series A · Incheon, Incheon · founded 2019$29.5Mraised▾
Developer of therapeutics for multiple diseases. It offers Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthetase-based drugs which include ZM-A001 for Pulmonary arterial hypertension, ZM-C001 for NASH (Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis), and ZM-C101 for colorectal cancer.
- May 2023Series A$12.1M
- 2021Series A$17.5M
#3
Series B · Seoul, Seoul · founded 2016 · 24 employees$10.2Mraised▾
Olive provide device and software for wellness and medical purpose. The products provided are for belly fat management, childhood obesity, senior care, fitness. For medical purposes, the product can be used to detect breast cancer, erectile dysfunction, and rehabilitation. The main product of the company is Bello that helps in lose belly fat and prevent risk of metabolic disease. It's a solution to measure belly fat. It recommends diet and fitness regimes.
- Dec 2019Series B$6.9M
- Mar 2018Series A$3.3M
- Jun 2016Seed—
#4
Seed · Seoul, Seoul · founded 2020 · 8 employees$175.5Kraised▾
Developer of therapeutics for treating multiple diseases. It offers a clinical multi-omics-based treatment for refractory sarcopenia, presbyopia, Duchhene muscular dystrophy, and renal failure.
- Jun 2023Seed—
- Jul 2021Seed$175.5K
#5
Seed · Daejeon, Daejeon · founded 2012—raised▾
Developer of microbiome therapeutics for the treatment of various diseases. The company is developing high-functioning probiotics which include HAC01 for glycemic control functional probiotics, ATG-K2 for body fat reduction & vaginitis treatment functional probiotics, ATG-K8 for vaginitis treatment, and more.
- Sep 2022Seed—
#6
Seed · Seoul, Seoul · founded 2016 · 9 employees—raised▾
AM Sciences is developing AMS-I series compounds for the treatment of Hepatitis B. These compounds inhibit capsid formation and in turn deactivating the transcription of cccDNA. The drug also removes the ccc DNA.
- Jan 2018Seed—
#7
Public · Seoul, Seoul · founded 2014 · 53 employees—raised▾
KOBIOLABS is developing microbiome therapeutics, companion diagnostics, and medicinal foods. The company focuses on inflammatory bowel diseases, metabolic syndromes, C.difficile infections, immune disinfection & mental disorders. Also developing microbiome based diagnostic biomarkers as well as medical foods including probiotic, prebiotic & synbiotics. The company's pipeline includes CUREbiotics (microbiome therapies) & CAREbiotics (medicinal foods).
- 2014Series A—
Funding & investor landscape
Notable founders
Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage
Share of Metabolic Diseases coverage by sub-theme.
Regulatory-risk over time rising
Funding & growth over time
funding rising · growth rising
How research on Biotechnology is moving in South Korea
A read on the academic research around Biotechnology — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 885 South Korea-affiliated papers.
- Ministry of Agriculture118
- Ministry of Education70
- Seoul National University53
- Yonsei University44
- Korea University36
- Gene2→26
- Genome1→10
- Transcription factor1→9
- Genome editing1→6
- Transformation (genetics)1→6
- Antimicrobial1→23
- Apoptosis1→12
- Cell culture2→10
- Cytotoxicity2→8
- Gene knockdown1→7
- Human health2→11
- Health benefits1→6
- Antibiotic resistance1→4
- Toxicity2→4
Where biotechnology is researched across South Korea
Location clusters by institution affiliation — each city's volume, stance tone, and a quick read on its hot topic, what's advancing, the opening opportunity, and the main concern.
Who's filing biotechnology patents in South Korea
South Korea biotechnology patent filing is accelerating — 58,964 filings from 8,000 assignees (2016–2025), led by CJ Cheiljedang, UNIV Korea RES & BUS Found, Samsung; annual filings 4052→6791.
- CJ Cheiljedang6608
- UNIV Korea RES & BUS Found1920
- Samsung1764
- Korea Advanced INST SCI & TECH1756
- Seoul NAT UNIV R&DB Foundation1752
- Korea RES INST Of Bioscience1535
- Hanmi Pharm IND1198
- Korea RES INST Bioscience & Biot1009
Common questions
Rohit lives in the feed. He covers what's moving right now — the funding rounds, launches and shifts breaking across the trade press — and ties them back to where the sector is heading.