OliX Pharmaceuticals secures USD 71.4M to advance RNAi biotechnology
OliX is set to utilize the newly raised capital to advance its ongoing siRNA-based therapeutic programs across multiple disease areas, with particular emphasis on skin-related and hair-related conditions.
SOUTH KOREA – OliX Pharmaceuticals, a leading developer of RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics based in Seoul, South Korea, announced today that it has successfully raised approximately KRW 110 billion ( USD 71.4 million) through a third-party allotment of newly issued common shares to strategic investors.
The investment was jointly made by BOLD, L’Oréal’s corporate venture capital fund, and Weiss Asset Management LP, a U.S. asset management firm that previously invested in OliX in August 2025 and continues as a key global investor in the company.
This strategic collaboration merges OliX’s world-class small interfering RNA (siRNA) platform capabilities with L’Oréal’s century-long commitment to beauty innovation and expertise spanning biology, technology, and product formulation, marking L’Oréal’s first equity investment in an siRNA company.
BOLD serves as L’Oréal’s venture investment arm, strategically backing promising beauty brands, biotechnology firms, and technology companies with the potential for disruptive innovation.
With the newly secured funds, OliX intends to advance its ongoing siRNA-based therapeutic projects across multiple disease areas, with particular emphasis on skin- and hair-related conditions, including its lead hair-loss drug candidate, OLX104C.
The company expects this investment to further strengthen its strategic partnership with L’Oréal, reinforcing its research foundation and accelerating development progress through 2028 and beyond.
Guive Balooch, Global Managing Director of Open Innovation and Augmented Beauty at L’Oréal, stated that the company is excited to strengthen its scientific partnership with OliX through BOLD’s equity investment, expressing conviction that together they will accelerate creation of the future of beauty for consumers globally with new performance levels backed by advanced biology and robust scientific proof.
Dong Ki Lee, CEO of OliX Pharmaceuticals, expressed delight in securing funding from both BOLD and Weiss, noting that their support reflects strong confidence in the partnership and shared vision for innovation, while the joint participation of a global strategic partner and major investor demonstrates strong market confidence in OliX’s technological competitiveness and future growth potential.
OliX Pharmaceuticals is a biotechnology company focused on developing innovative therapeutics that regulate disease-causing gene expression using RNA interference technology, with multiple pipeline programs currently in clinical development.
The company leverages its proprietary core drug development platform, OASIS (OliX Advanced Small Interfering RNA System), which is designed to enhance RNAi’s high gene-silencing efficiency and enable tissue-specific delivery of locally administered therapeutics targeting hair loss, age-related macular degeneration, and hypertrophic scars.
By incorporating hepatocyte-specific delivery technology, OliX is also building pipelines in liver-related diseases, including metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, obesity, and cardiometabolic disorders.
Under its mid-to-long-term growth strategy, the “OliX 2.0 Roadmap,” the company continues expanding RNAi therapeutic applications while building novel delivery platform technologies targeting the central nervous system and adipose tissue, expanding follow-on pipelines, and pursuing differentiated RNAi therapeutics across a broad range of disease areas.
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