ACRO Biomedical's ABCcolla® Collagen Ophthalmic Matrix (Cornea) was recently approved for export by the Taiwanese Ministry of Health and Welfare, making it the world's first made-in-Taiwan corneal transplant product to reach the global market. ACRO Biomedical will receive a third stage milestone payment from its Australian licensing partner, Oculus BioMed, which will be recognised in December and is expected to be accretive to revenue and profitability.

Chairman Dr. Dar-Jen Hsieh indicated that their corneal products are made from pig corneas, which has a cost advantage, and can be used for patients suffering from fungal infections, bacterial infections, corneal injuries and other factors. After the successful completion of the clinical trial in Taiwan with the positive data, the marketing approval will lay a solid foundation for the company's future operations. Dr. Hsieh further stated that ACRO Biomedical has successfully raised funds with the support of the capital market and will commence clinical trials in China and India as soon as possible.

According to statistics, there are more than 3,000 cases of corneal transplants in Taiwan each year, and the demand for corneas in China and India is more than 10 million, representing a significant market opportunity. Currently, the main method of treatment is human donation, which is unreliable and expensive. The market expects that the price and supply advantages of ACRO's corneal replacement products will fill the gap in the market and bring an immediate choice of light to patients who desperately need it.

Dr. Hsieh further explained that human corneal donation is prone to rejection by the recipient and requires long-term anti-rejection medication, which is quite inconvenient and results in additional medical expenses, whereas ACRO's corneal grafts are treated through a de-cellularisation process, which does not cause rejection and does not require waiting for genetic matching, which is attractive to patients to some extent.