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[Seungkwon Kim, Edaily Reporter] South Korean pharmaceutical company iCure announced it has signed a five-year supply agreement worth approximately 40.9 billion won ($30.5 million) with Canadian firm Honessan Pharma for topical patch formulations of lidocaine, ketoprofen, and loxoprofen. The patches will be distributed across the Middle East under the terms of the deal.

This marks the largest overseas topical patch supply deal in iCure’s history. On an annual average basis, the contract equates to around 8.2 billion won ($6.1 million) in revenue, nearly 62% of iCure’s 2024 sales from its core patch and topical CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) business, which totaled 13.1 billion won. It also represents about 34% of the company’s total 2024 pharmaceutical revenue of 23.9 billion won.

With this latest deal, iCure’s cumulative overseas pharmaceutical supply contracts over the past two years now total roughly 300 billion won ($224 million), based on recent exchange rates.

Of that total, the donepezil patch accounts for the largest portion. The product, initially licensed to Italy’s Menarini, has expanded to cover 43 countries across Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa, securing deals worth about 240 billion won, including upfront and milestone payments. Meanwhile, topical patches including the new deal with Honessan have secured contracts in 40 countries across similar regions, totaling approximately 58.2 billion won.

The company expects these accumulated contracts to transition iCure’s pharma business from a domestic-focused sales structure to one increasingly driven by exports. To commercialize the supply deals, iCure is currently collaborating with each partner on obtaining local regulatory approvals.

“When I became CEO three years ago, I was convinced that expanding our pharmaceutical business beyond the limited domestic market was essential for long-term profitability,” said iCure CEO Lee Young-seok. “Since then, we’ve focused on signing overseas CDMO contracts for our core patch and topical formulations. I’m proud that our efforts have led to cumulative deals worth nearly 300 billion won. We will now accelerate exports, boost our factory utilization, and continue to drive revenue growth and profitability.” He added.