GCCL Targets Global Expansion, Differentiates Through Advanced Clinical Sample Analysis

[On-site Interview] Choi Yu-hwa, Head of Business Operations: “Developing Demand-Driven Assays for CNS and Beyond”

GCCL, a clinical trial sample analysis company under the GC Group, is accelerating its global CRO strategy by leveraging its strong R&D capabilities in assay development. While reinforcing its position in the Asia market—traditionally centered around Singapore—the company is also stepping up efforts to expand into Western markets.

The Bell met with Choi Yoo-hwa, Head of Business Operations at GCCL, to discuss the company’s global expansion strategy and recent achievements in analytical method development. Choi also serves as a member of the R&D Expert Committee under Korea’s Food and Drug Safety Regulatory Science Innovation Committee, an advisory body to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS).

◇  IR Pitching and Networking Events Target Potential Clients

GCCL participated in BioPlus-Interphex Korea (BIX 2025) with a dedicated exhibition booth, introducing visitors to its differentiated central laboratory services and R&D-driven analytical capabilities.

BIX 2025, hosted by the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization (KoreaBIO) and organized by RX Korea, was held at COEX in Seoul from October 15 to 17. The event featured exhibitions, conferences, and partnering meetings designed to promote collaboration among domestic and international biotech companies.

At this year’s event, GCCL placed a strong focus on engaging potential clients. In addition to operating its booth, the company hosted separate IR pitching and networking sessions for professionals from the pharmaceutical and investment communities. The goal was not only to promote GCCL’s services, but also to contribute to the broader growth of the biotech ecosystem.

“We wanted to create an opportunity for biotech startups facing funding challenges to connect with potential investors,” Choi explained. “Despite the difficult industry environment, we were able to organize this event thanks to the strong support of the GC Group.”

Founded in 2019, GCCL was established as a spin-off of the clinical trial analysis division of the Green Cross Medical Foundation. GC LabCell initially held a stake in the company, and following its merger into GC Cell in 2021, GCCL became a subsidiary of GC Cell. More than 20 years of accumulated sample analysis expertise from the Green Cross Medical Foundation now form the foundation of GCCL’s competitiveness.

GC Cell currently holds a 65.45% stake in GCCL as the largest shareholder, followed by C&R Research with 25.57%. The Green Cross Medical Foundation also retains a 4.35% stake.

Among CROs, GCCL places particular emphasis on its role as a central laboratory. In multicenter clinical trials, central labs integrate and analyze samples collected from multiple hospitals, ensuring consistency and reliability in analytical results and ultimately improving the credibility of clinical trial outcomes.

GCCL’s core competitive strength lies in its R&D laboratory services. While many central labs focus primarily on routine chemistry and hematology tests, GCCL has expanded its scope to include biomarker discovery, assay development, and validation. The company supports pharmaceutical sponsors across the entire development continuum—from biomarker identification in early research to late-stage clinical trials.

“Traditionally, central labs paid limited attention to R&D,” Choi noted. “However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, central lab functions became essential for vaccine and therapeutic development. That period allowed us to accumulate significant R&D experience.”

GCCL places particular emphasis on customized assay development in close collaboration with clients. In the first half of 2025, the company completed the development of analytical methods for cell therapies and CNS disease biomarkers. A representative example is the joint development of a biomarker assay with Curebus, a Korean biotech company developing novel treatments for Alzheimer’s disease.

GCCL has also entered into a collaboration agreement with a major domestic pharmaceutical company to support a late-stage immuno-oncology clinical trial using a proprietary neutralizing antibody assay developed in-house.

“Developing biomarker assays for Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease is highly challenging,” Choi said. “By co-developing CNS biomarker assays with our clients, we successfully completed method development and published joint academic papers. More recently, we signed an MOU with Seoul National University’s Center for Neuropsychiatric Disease Evaluation, expanding our research scope from clinical to non-clinical stages.”

Currently holding the No. 1 market share in Korea’s central lab CRO sector, GCCL’s next objective is global expansion. The company aims to firmly establish itself as a leading player in Asia while steadily extending its footprint into Western markets.

Historically, Singapore has served as the hub of the Asian central lab market. However, GCCL believes that Korea’s precision technologies and analytical expertise are fully competitive on a global level, and is positioning itself to help reshape the regional market landscape.

One remaining challenge is expanding experience in multinational clinical trials. While GCCL has extensive experience in domestic sample analysis, its exposure to multi-country trials remains relatively limited. To address this, the company plans to establish strategic partnerships with overseas CROs, laboratories, and clinical trial partners, positioning itself as a coordinating hub that provides integrated services across regions.

“This year, we were recognized by Frost & Sullivan as a key provider of bioanalytical services in the Asia-Pacific region,” Choi said. “This recognition signifies that GCCL has entered the top tier in APAC. While Singapore has long been considered the center of the Asian central lab market, we want to demonstrate that GCCL can represent Asia as a leading central laboratory.”

Source: The Bell, reported by Kim Chan-hyuk -  https://www.thebell.co.kr/free/content/ArticleView.asp?key=202510161121309160108581