AbbVie Korea and Roche Korea led a sharp pullback in donation spending last year, cutting contributions even as their revenues grew, underscoring a broader pattern among multinational drugmakers in Korea.
Major multinational pharmaceutical companies in Korea cut their combined donations by 11.43 percent last year despite strong sales growth (Credit: Getty Images)
According to the latest regulatory filings submitted to the Financial Supervisory Service, 32 multinational pharmaceutical companies operating in Korea spent a combined 12 billion won ($8.1 million) on donations last year, down 11.43 percent from 13.5 billddion won a year earlier. The decline amounted to about 1.55 billion won.
The reduction contrasted with the companies’ financial results. Many multinational drugmakers posted revenue growth, with several recording double-digit gains, suggesting that donation spending failed to keep pace with business expansion.
AbbVie Korea recorded the steepest decline in donation spending, cutting its donations to 361.5 million won from 1.07 billion won a year earlier, a decrease of 708.9 million won. This came despite the company reporting 356.1 billion won in revenue in 2025, up 15.3 percent from a year earlier, while operating profit rose 5.6 percent to 15.5 billion won.
Roche Korea posted the second-largest decrease in donations. The company remained one of the largest donors among multinational drugmakers, spending 1.85 billion won last year, down 489.4 million won from a year earlier. This came as its revenue rose 12.3 percent to 493.6 billion won from 439.5 billion won, while it turned to an operating profit of 16.3 billion won after posting a loss the previous year.
Cuts extend across the sector
Other companies also made sharp cuts to donation spending. Kyowa Kirin Korea reduced its donations to 101 million won from 509.1 million won, a drop of 408.2 million won. Astellas Pharma Korea cut its donations to 122 million won from 389.4 million won, while Novartis Korea reduced its contributions to 214.8 million won from 483.4 million won. Vantive Korea also lowered its donation spending to 178.2 million won from 457 million won.
Gilead Sciences Korea reduced its donation spending to 353.7 million won from 520 million won, down 166.3 million won. Unlike AbbVie and Roche, however, its revenue also declined, falling 26.8 percent to 234 billion won from 319.8 billion won, with operating profit decreasing 26.7 percent to 9.9 billion won.
Janssen Korea also reduced its donations to 253.3 million won from 423.2 million won, while MSD Korea cut its donation spending to 225.2 million won from 275.4 million won. Santen Korea likewise trimmed its donations to 30.9 million won from 38.6 million won.
These companies have traditionally used donations to support patient organizations, rare disease awareness campaigns, low-income medicine assistance programs, and academic activities. They have also served as a tool to manage public perception in Korea, where multinational drugmakers often face criticism over profit repatriation and headquarters-driven decision-making.
Not all followed the trend
Still, not all companies followed the trend.
AstraZeneca Korea maintained its position as the largest donor among multinational drugmakers, spending 3.42 billion won last year, up 10.73 percent from a year earlier, while Otsuka Pharmaceutical Korea increased its donations by 332.8 million won to 1.42 billion won.
UCB Korea raised its donations to 576.7 million won from 415.8 million won, and Pfizer Korea increased its contributions to 557.5 million won from 336 million won. Sanofi-Aventis Korea also raised its donation amount to 259.1 million won from 217.1 million won, while Merck increased its spending to 242.4 million won from 129 million won.
Ipsen Korea and Viatris Korea each spent more than 100 million won, and Lilly Korea newly reported 102 million won in donation spending after recording none the previous year.
Haleon Korea increased its donations to 88.5 million won from 74.5 million won, while Galderma Korea raised its contributions to 30 million won from 15.1 million won. Servier Korea also posted a modest increase, to 2 million won from 1.2 million won.
Boehringer Ingelheim Korea, Bayer Korea, and Novo Nordisk Pharma Korea each spent between 20 million won and 45 million won.
Lee Han-soo
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