HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk appears at the financial crimes investigation division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in western Seoul on Sept. 15, 2025. [YONHAP]
Police have applied for an arrest warrant for Bang Si-hyuk, the chairman of HYBE on charges of fraudulent unfair trading, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s financial crimes investigation division on Tuesday.
The police first called Bang into questioning in last September. Bang has been subjected to a travel ban since last August. Bang has since been summoned by the police for questioning five times.
Bang is accused of misleading HYBE, then called Big Hit Entertainment, investors in 2019 by telling them there were no plans for a public stock listing and leading the shareholders to sell their shares to a specific private equity fund. Shortly after, the company went public in 2020.
Police suspect Bang allegedly pocketed 30 percent of the capital gains when the private equity fund sold its shares after the IPO. Bang allegedly secured illicit profits of 190 billion won ($129 million) through an undisclosed agreement with the private equity fund.
The Capital Markets Act prohibits obtaining financial gains through false statements or using deceptive schemes in connection with financial investment products, including unlisted shares.
HYBE’s headquarters in Yongsan District, central Seoul. [YONHAP]
HYBE is a multinational conglomerate known for managing K-pop acts such as the boy band BTS and the girl groups Katseye and NewJeans.
The U.S. Embassy in Korea recently sent a letter to the Korean National Police Agency requesting cooperation in allowing Bang to visit the United States, citing reasons including global activities such as BTS’s world tour.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
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