HYBE chief faces third round of grilling over IPO fraud allegations
Published: 05 Nov. 2025, 11:38
Updated: 05 Nov. 2025, 12:17
![HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk appears at the Financial Crimes Investigation Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in western Seoul on Sept. 15. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/11/05/236923fb-af33-45d8-9c66-9d3f315d9d57.jpg)
HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk appears at the Financial Crimes Investigation Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in western Seoul on Sept. 15. [YONHAP]
Police questioned HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk for a third time on Wednesday over suspicions of violating the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act.
The financial crime unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said that it was questioning Bang as a suspect on Wednesday morning. It is his third round of questioning, following two public summons in September.
Bang is suspected of misleading investors in 2019 by falsely claiming there were no plans for HYBE — then known as Big Hit Entertainment — to go public, then selling a stake to a private equity fund. When the label began preparing for an initial public offering (IPO), the fund sold its shares, and Bang reportedly received around 190 billion won ($131 million) in profits from the sale under a prearranged agreement.
Police are closely examining Bang’s statement, the flow of funds around the IPO and the structure of the agreement.
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.
BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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