HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk Sent to Prosecutors Without Detention After 20-Month Police Probe

After roughly a year and eight months of investigation, police have sent HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk and four others to prosecutors without detention over alleged fraudulent trading during the company’s listing.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s financial crimes unit said the suspects deceived existing shareholders before HYBE’s 2020 listing. Although the company was preparing to go public, they allegedly told shareholders there were no listing plans and encouraged them to sell their shares.

Police believe Bang played a leading role. They say he ordered a review of listing options in April 2019, received a report in June and formed a listing preparation team in July. Between August and October that year, Bang’s side allegedly continued telling existing shareholders that no listing was planned.

The shares sold by those shareholders were bought through a special-purpose company established through a private equity fund. After HYBE listed, the vehicle sold all of its shares and made 263.1 billion won in gains. Police applied for preservation of the entire amount before indictment, and a court granted the request. Bang is reportedly believed to have received more than 150 billion won under a confidential agreement governing the distribution of the proceeds.

Police began a preliminary investigation into HYBE management-related allegations in December 2024. They sought arrest warrants for Bang twice in April, but prosecutors rejected both requests and demanded further investigation, saying the alleged harm to the broader capital market needed more explanation. Police said the conduct went beyond deceiving shareholders and disrupted the capital market. The case now goes to the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office.