KIM BEOM SU
Kakao founder KIM BEOM SU, accused of manipulating the market price during the acquisition process of SM Entertainment, has been arrested.
An arrest warrant requested by the prosecution against President KIM BEOM SU was issued on July 23. Han Jung Seok, senior judge of the Seoul Southern District Court, issued an arrest warrant requested by the prosecution early in the morning after questioning a suspect before the arrest of President KIM BEOM SU on suspicion of raping the law on capital markets.
The prosecution is expected to investigate whether KIM BEOM SU was directly involved in manipulating market prices during the arrest period which can be up to 20 days and hand it over to court.
State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim is accused of manipulating the market price (violation of the Capital Markets Law) in an attempt to fix SM Entertainment‘s stock price at a level higher than Hybe’s purchase price of 120,000 won in order to prevent the purchase of its rival in February last year.
The prosecution, which has obtained the location of KIM BEOM SU, plans to focus on whether he gave specific instructions when purchasing SM Entertainment shares.
The prosecution conducted an investigation, estimating that Kakao spent around 240 billion won with One Asia Partners, a private equity fund manager, over a total of four days, including February 16 and 17 and 27 and 28 of last year to buy SM Entertainment shares at high prices.
Kakao is in a state of extreme tension due to the arrest of President KIM BEOM SU. The entertainment industry also predicts that the arrest of President KIM BEOM SU will inevitably disrupt Kakao’s future business progress.
Kakao Entertainment is focused on its global expansion, including global artist tours and overseas album releases, but it may slow down following this incident.
Journalist: Shawn
Translator: Shawn
Source: Yonhap news
