SEOUL, South Korea (CelebrityAccess) — South Korean law enforcement officials raided offices raided the offices of K-pop agency on July 24th after company founder and chairman Bang Si-hyuk was accused of unfair trading practices.
The Korea JoongAng Daily reported that the raids were carried out by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Financial Crime Investigation Division, following a formal complaint filed with the Securities and Futures Commission, accusing Bang of violating the Capital Markets Act through unfair trading practices.
Bang faces allegations that he profited nearly 400 billion Korean won (about $290 million USD at present exchange rates) ahead of the company’s public listing and rebranding from Big Hit Entertainment to Hybe.
Founded in 2005 by Bang Si-hyuk, Hybe rose to international prominence through the success of the agency’s K-pop acts such as BTS and Tomorrow X Together.
They expanded to the U.S. in 2021 through a partnership with Scooter Braun’s U.S.-based company Ithaca Holdings.
Hybe did not respond to a request for comment but told Reuters that the company was fully cooperating with law enforcement officials in the “fact-finding” probe.
