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- CEPI to provide up to USD 30 million to support development of MSD's Zaire ebolavirus vaccine
- Collaboration addresses manufacturing complexity and cold-chain challenges to improve yield and thermostability
- Partnership aims to expand affordable and sustainable vaccine access in low- and middle-income countries
INCHEON, South Korea, Jan. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- SK bioscience announced that it is advancing the development of a Zaire ebolavirus vaccine under a new collaboration supported by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).
The announcement follows a funding agreement between CEPI and global pharmaceutical company MSD to support continued development of a Zaire ebolavirus vaccine. Under the agreement, CEPI will provide up to USD 30 million in funding to MSD, which will allocate the funding to its development partners, including SK bioscience and Hilleman Laboratories—a joint venture between MSD and Wellcome, a global charitable foundation focused on health research—to carry out key research, manufacturing process improvement and clinical development activities.
The collaboration builds on MSD's WHO-prequalified Zaire ebolavirus vaccine and focuses on updating the existing manufacturing process, which is complex and requires ultra-low temperature storage. These requirements pose logistical challenges in the remote, low-resource settings where Zaire ebolavirus outbreaks most often occur. By improving manufacturing yield and enhancing the thermostability of the vaccine, the project aims to support more affordable, accessible, and sustainable vaccine supply, subject to regulatory review and public health requirements.
Under the collaboration, Hilleman Laboratories —will lead the clinical development of the updated vaccine. SK bioscience, together with IDT Biologika, will develop the updated drug substance manufacturing process and the associated drug product. As a key implementation partner in the CEPI-backed public health initiative, SK bioscience will leverage its vaccine manufacturing expertise and infrastructure, as well as its collaboration with IDT Biologika. Through this role, the company aims to contribute to improving vaccine affordability, accessibility, and long-term sustainability in low- and middle-income countries.
Zaire ebolavirus is responsible for frequent and unpredictable Ebola outbreaks and is associated with a survival rate of around 50%. Recent outbreaks reported in parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other countries have underscored the continued global risk posed by the virus, particularly in areas with limited healthcare access and logistics infrastructure.
Dr. Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI, said, "In a single decade the world has transformed Ebola from a global emergency to a disease that can be stopped in its tracks – and now CEPI's support will help to enable a sustainable and accessible supply of MSD's Zaire ebolavirus vaccine for years to come at a more affordable price. This deal brings together longstanding partners of CEPI with longstanding partners of MSD to boost global defences against one of the deadliest pathogens known to humankind, helping to save lives."
Jaeyong Ahn, CEO of SK bioscience, said, "Addressing deadly infectious diseases such as Ebola requires strong global collaboration. Through this CEPI-supported partnership, SK bioscience will continue to play a critical role in improving Zaire ebolavirus vaccine manufacturing and supply, contributing meaningfully to global health preparedness."
SK bioscience has established a strong track record of collaboration with global health organizations, including CEPI, the Gates Foundation, and the International Vaccine Institute (IVI). By leveraging its integrated capabilities across development, manufacturing, and supply, the company continues to expand its role as a global partner in public health–driven vaccine initiatives.
About SK bioscience
SK bioscience is an innovative vaccine and biotech company, committed to vaccine development and manufacturing to enable more equitable access to vaccines around the world. Leveraging strengths on cutting-edge technologies, SK bioscience has been dedicated to promoting human health from prevention to cure across the globe. With the cooperation of domestic and international governments, regulatory agencies, healthcare providers, doctors, and medical experts, all of the SK colleagues are passionately committed to providing high-quality vaccines to those who need them and better public healthcare solutions.
- SK bioscience Website
- SK bioscience Linkedin
Contact
SK bioscience Communications Team
Changhyun Jin (jin99@sk.com)
Muncheol. Kim (MC|_kim@sk.com)
- CEPI to provide up to USD 30 million to support development of MSD's Zaire ebolavirus vaccine
- Collaboration addresses manufacturing complexity and cold-chain challenges to improve yield and thermostability
- Partnership aims to expand affordable and sustainable vaccine access in low- and middle-income countries
INCHEON, South Korea, Jan. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- SK bioscience announced that it is advancing the development of a Zaire ebolavirus vaccine under a new collaboration supported by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).
The announcement follows a funding agreement between CEPI and global pharmaceutical company MSD to support continued development of a Zaire ebolavirus vaccine. Under the agreement, CEPI will provide up to USD 30 million in funding to MSD, which will allocate the funding to its development partners, including SK bioscience and Hilleman Laboratories—a joint venture between MSD and Wellcome, a global charitable foundation focused on health research—to carry out key research, manufacturing process improvement and clinical development activities.
The collaboration builds on MSD's WHO-prequalified Zaire ebolavirus vaccine and focuses on updating the existing manufacturing process, which is complex and requires ultra-low temperature storage. These requirements pose logistical challenges in the remote, low-resource settings where Zaire ebolavirus outbreaks most often occur. By improving manufacturing yield and enhancing the thermostability of the vaccine, the project aims to support more affordable, accessible, and sustainable vaccine supply, subject to regulatory review and public health requirements.
Under the collaboration, Hilleman Laboratories —will lead the clinical development of the updated vaccine. SK bioscience, together with IDT Biologika, will develop the updated drug substance manufacturing process and the associated drug product. As a key implementation partner in the CEPI-backed public health initiative, SK bioscience will leverage its vaccine manufacturing expertise and infrastructure, as well as its collaboration with IDT Biologika. Through this role, the company aims to contribute to improving vaccine affordability, accessibility, and long-term sustainability in low- and middle-income countries.
Zaire ebolavirus is responsible for frequent and unpredictable Ebola outbreaks and is associated with a survival rate of around 50%. Recent outbreaks reported in parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other countries have underscored the continued global risk posed by the virus, particularly in areas with limited healthcare access and logistics infrastructure.
Dr. Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI, said, "In a single decade the world has transformed Ebola from a global emergency to a disease that can be stopped in its tracks – and now CEPI's support will help to enable a sustainable and accessible supply of MSD's Zaire ebolavirus vaccine for years to come at a more affordable price. This deal brings together longstanding partners of CEPI with longstanding partners of MSD to boost global defences against one of the deadliest pathogens known to humankind, helping to save lives."
Jaeyong Ahn, CEO of SK bioscience, said, "Addressing deadly infectious diseases such as Ebola requires strong global collaboration. Through this CEPI-supported partnership, SK bioscience will continue to play a critical role in improving Zaire ebolavirus vaccine manufacturing and supply, contributing meaningfully to global health preparedness."
SK bioscience has established a strong track record of collaboration with global health organizations, including CEPI, the Gates Foundation, and the International Vaccine Institute (IVI). By leveraging its integrated capabilities across development, manufacturing, and supply, the company continues to expand its role as a global partner in public health–driven vaccine initiatives.
About SK bioscience
SK bioscience is an innovative vaccine and biotech company, committed to vaccine development and manufacturing to enable more equitable access to vaccines around the world. Leveraging strengths on cutting-edge technologies, SK bioscience has been dedicated to promoting human health from prevention to cure across the globe. With the cooperation of domestic and international governments, regulatory agencies, healthcare providers, doctors, and medical experts, all of the SK colleagues are passionately committed to providing high-quality vaccines to those who need them and better public healthcare solutions.
- SK bioscience Website
- SK bioscience Linkedin
Contact
SK bioscience Communications Team
Changhyun Jin (jin99@sk.com)
Muncheol. Kim (MC|_kim@sk.com)
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
SK bioscience, MSD, and Hilleman Laboratories Advance Zaire ebolavirus Vaccine Development with CEPI Funding
SINGAPORE, Jan. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Toku Ltd. ("Toku" or the "Company"), a Singapore-incorporated customer experience (CX) technology company, today commenced trading on the Catalist Board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited ("SGX-ST"), following the successful completion of its initial public offering ("IPO").
The Company's shares opened at S$0.260, reached an intraday high of S$0.305, and closed at S$0.285, with trading beginning on a "ready" basis at 9:00 a.m. SGT under the ticker symbol TKU.
The IPO comprised 65,000,000 Invitation Shares at an offer price of S$0.25 per share, consisting of 2,000,000 Public Offer Shares and 63,000,000 Placement Shares. The Invitation raised total gross proceeds of S$16.25 million, giving the Company a post-IPO market capitalisation of approximately S$142.56 million, based on its enlarged share capital.
Commenting on the Company's listing, Thomas Laboulle, Founder and CEO of Toku, said, "Debuting on SGX Catalist is a significant step in Toku's evolution as an enterprise software company, as we accelerate our mission to transform how enterprises manage customer interactions. As a public company, we are sharpening our focus on execution, governance and long-term value creation. We will continue to invest in end-to-end innovation across our technology and solution stack, strengthening our ability to deliver smarter, faster, and fully compliant solutions to our customers located across the globe. This milestone gives us the platform and discipline to scale responsibly as customer expectations and regulatory requirements continue to rise across markets."
Mrs Lim Hwee Hua, Non-Independent Non-Executive Chairman of Toku, said: "The successful listing marks an important milestone for Toku and is a testament to the team's focus, discipline and execution. Going public carries significant responsibility, reinforcing our commitment to transparency, sound governance, and long-term value. I am pleased to be part of Toku's journey as it continues to focus on creating meaningful impact for customers across diverse industries."
"We are proud to have worked with Toku on its Singapore listing and the strong interest from investors reflects the market's confidence in Toku's business and strategy. With access to public markets, enhanced profile, brand recognition and credibility, Toku is well positioned to attract new talent, deepen customer relationships, expand into new markets and scale internationally. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Toku." said Mark Liew, CEO, PrimePartners.
"We are pleased to support Toku in its listing as a co-placement agent. Its highly scalable business model enables global growth and coupled with the team's dynamism, it is an exciting AI-centric growth story to watch. We look forward to bringing more high quality homegrown companies to market this year," said Jason Saw, Group Head of Investment Banking, CGS International Securities.
Headquartered in Singapore, Toku provides a cloud-native CX platform that enables enterprises and public-sector organisations to manage customer interactions across voice, chat, email and digital channels within a single integrated environment. Designed for complex, multi-market operations, the platform combines communications infrastructure with AI capabilities such as transcription, summarisation and conversation analytics, while supporting deployment across commercial cloud, private data centres and hybrid environments to meet regulatory, linguistic and operational requirements.
Proceeds from the IPO will be used to support continued investment in Toku's technology platform, expansion of its partner ecosystem, geographic growth, and general corporate purposes, in line with the Company's stated strategy.
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About Toku
Headquartered in Singapore, Toku Ltd. ("Toku") is a cloud-native, AI-powered customer experience platform purpose-built for enterprises operating in complex, multi-market environments. With deep roots in the APAC region and an expanding global footprint, Toku's modular 360° CX Platform orchestrates customer interactions across voice, chat, email and digital channels while managing regulatory, linguistic and infrastructure complexity at scale.
Built on end-to-end ownership of its technology stack, from carrier-grade connectivity to AI applications, Toku delivers enterprise-grade security, reliability and deployment flexibility across commercial cloud, private data centres and hybrid environments. Its AI capabilities include transcription, summarisation, sentiment analysis, conversation analytics and governed virtual agents, designed to integrate seamlessly with enterprise systems and customer data.
Trusted by leading enterprises and public-sector organisations, Toku helps organisations streamline operations, scale customer engagement and deliver consistent experiences across fragmented markets.
For more information about Toku, visit toku.co
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
AI-Powered Customer Experience Platform Toku Opens Trading on SGX with Strong Debut as First IPO of 2026
