Suspected of financial fraud, South Korean police apply for the arrest of entertainment tycoon.

On the 21st, the South Korean police applied for the arrest of South Korean entertainment tycoon, Bang Si-hyuk, on suspicion of fraudulent transactions before the company's initial public offering. Bang Si-hyuk is the founder and chairman of South Korea's HYBE company. According to reports from various media including Yonhap News Agency, before HYBE went public, Bang Si-hyuk is suspected of falsely telling early investors in 2019 that the company had no intention of going public. The misled investors then sold their shares to a private equity fund associated with Bang Si-hyuk's assistant. Subsequently, HYBE went public in 2020, and the fund also sold its related shares. According to a shareholder agreement, Bang Si-hyuk received approximately 30% of the profits from the sale, totaling nearly 200 billion Korean won. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Department in South Korea said Bang Si-hyuk is suspected of fraudulent transactions. South Korean capital market laws stipulate that individuals who profit 5 billion Korean won or more through false statements on financial investment products can be sentenced to at least 5 years in prison, with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.