Namgung Gyeon, chairman of Fantagio, is under police investigation for suspicions of having distorted investment judgment by using inside information from the KOSDAQ-listed company Humasis.
The media outlet News1 reported on August 8 that the financial crime investigation team of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s metropolitan investigation group received on the 22nd of last month at the Mapo Police Station in Seoul the complaint against Chairman Namgung Gyeon and former Humasis representative Kim Seong Gon for violation of the Capital Markets Act, and opened an investigation.
The complaint targeting Chairman Namgung Gyeon was filed on June 10 at the Mapo Police Station, and the police indicated that after interviewing the complainant on the 6th of last month, they transferred the case to the financial crime investigation team of the Seoul Police Agency due to the nature and technicality of the file.
Chairman Namgung Gyeon is suspected of having taken advantage of his position as an insider observer as the effective controller of Humasis to selectively transmit information regarding main activities and the buyback of treasury shares, thus distorting investment judgment. The complainant maintains that this mode of providing information constitutes a fraudulent transaction under Article 178 of the Capital Markets Act, which prohibits fraudulent means, plans, or artifices related to financial instrument transactions. The complainant also raised suspicions that non-public information on Humasis’s main activities and treasury share buybacks was transmitted to certain shareholders prior to public disclosure.
The police are expected to analyze phone records, official company announcements, and stock transaction data in order to verify the timing of information transmission and publication, as well as the flow of stock transactions before and after that moment. It is also planned that the investigation examine whether the act of providing information was intended to influence investment judgment or the stock price.
Chairman Namgung Gyeon completely denies these accusations, stating: “The buyback and cancellation of treasury shares were proposals made to the company by representatives of minority shareholders at the time as a measure to enhance shareholder value. The company then carried out these steps in accordance with legal decision-making, notably within the board of directors, and public disclosure procedures.”
Fantagio houses artists such as Kang Ye Won, Kim Seonho, Mun Ka Young, Ong Seong Wu, Lee Sung Kyoung, Lee Se Young, Cha Eun Woo, and Cha Jun Hwan. The company recently produced the SBS drama “Agent Kim reactivated”.
Journalist: Shawn
Translator: Shawn
Source: Website Fantagio
