Hanmi Readies Korea’s First Homegrown GLP-1 Obesity Drug for Launch

Hanmi Pharmaceutical is preparing to launch Eppe, billed as South Korea’s first domestically developed GLP-1 obesity treatment, turning a drug candidate once returned by a global partner into a central part of the Korean company’s growth strategy.

The injectable medicine uses efpeglenatide, which Hanmi originally developed as a diabetes treatment. In 2015, the company licensed efpeglenatide and two other diabetes candidates to French drugmaker Sanofi in an agreement valued at up to 3.9 billion euros. Sanofi returned the rights to efpeglenatide in 2020 after changing its development strategy.

Rather than ending the program, Hanmi redirected the candidate toward obesity treatment under Vice Chair Lim Ju-hyun. The pivot came as Lim assumed a larger role in the company after the death of founder Lim Sung-ki in 2020 and as the founding family faced a management dispute. The decision preserved a research asset that had already undergone extensive development while giving Hanmi a route into the fast-growing weight-management market.

South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety approved Eppe earlier in October. Hanmi expects the prescription drug to become available before the end of the month. The lowest dose is expected to cost about 130,000 won, or roughly $98, for a four-week supply, positioning it below the starting price of Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro, which currently leads the Korean obesity-drug market.

Hanmi says Eppe’s potential selling points include its slow-absorption technology, Korean clinical data, possible cardiovascular and renal benefits, and the prospect of fewer gastrointestinal side effects. The company is also emphasizing affordability as it prepares to compete against imported GLP-1 products. Domestic manufacturing could further support supply stability in Korea.

The launch forms part of a broader obesity-drug strategy rather than a single-product push. In August, Hanmi licensed HM17321, an experimental treatment designed to promote weight loss while preserving lean body mass, to Roche subsidiary Genentech. The agreement was valued at up to $2.3 billion, including an upfront payment of $190 million, making it one of the largest licensing deals in South Korea’s biopharmaceutical sector.

For Hanmi, Eppe’s commercial debut will test whether the company can translate a long and difficult development history into a competitive domestic franchise. It will also show whether a lower-priced Korean entrant can gain ground in a market shaped by global pharmaceutical groups and strong demand for injectable weight-loss medicines.