'200 Billion Won Sale Profit' Bang Si-hyuk HYBE Chairman "Sorry for Causing Concern"

[Financial News] Bang Si-hyuk, chairman of HYBE, who is under suspicion of deceiving existing investors to sell shares during HYBE's listing process, appeared for a police investigation.
Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Financial Crimes Investigation Unit summoned Chairman Bang as a suspect on the morning of the 15th for allegations of violating the Capital Markets Act. Chairman Bang arrived at the Gwangsudan building in Mapo-gu at around 9:55 AM and stated, "I apologize for causing concern with my matter. I will cooperate fully with the investigation."
Regarding specific questions such as whether shares were sold during the IPO process, he avoided answering by saying, "I will speak during the investigation."
According to the police, Chairman Bang is suspected of deceiving existing investors, such as venture capitalists, by saying "there are no IPO plans" before HYBE's listing in 2019, and then selling shares to a special purpose company (SPC) established by a private equity fund related to him. Subsequently, the private equity fund sold the held shares after listing, and Chairman Bang reportedly received about 30% of the sale profit, amounting to approximately 200 billion won, according to the shareholder agreement.
The police became aware of the case through intelligence last December and launched an investigation. On June 30th, they conducted a search and seizure at the Korea Exchange in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, and on July 24th at HYBE's headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, securing related materials.
Last month, Chairman Bang stated in an internal email, "I expect the facts to be clarified and will humbly await the authorities' judgment."
However, some in the financial investment industry speculate that it may be difficult to prove the allegations since existing investors also made significant profits and sold their shares, and the profit Chairman Bang gained was a counter-benefit for bearing the risk of a put option. 


425_sama@fnnews.com Choi Seung-han Reporter