Why are the police looking to arrest the billionaire behind BTS?

2026-04-22 07:37:00, Lifestyle CNA

K-pop mogul Bang Si-hyuk, the man who created the supergroup BTS, could be arrested on fraudulent trading charges before his $7.3 billion company goes public.

South Korean police have asked prosecutors to seek a court order over allegations that he defrauded investors in 2019 by claiming that a public listing for his Hybe conglomerate was not possible while secretly preparing for it.

Hybe debuted on South Korea's Kospi stock exchange in October 2020 and police allege Bang embezzled around 200 billion won ($136 million; £101 million) as a result. He denies the charges.

The case against Bang is long and has included raids on Hybe's headquarters, freezing of some of his assets, and calls for him to resign as chairman of the company.

The 53-year-old has claimed his actions were illegal. He has been banned from traveling abroad since August while the investigation is ongoing.

The request for an arrest warrant comes weeks after BTS - the crown jewel of Hybe and the reason for their incredible success - embarked on a comeback world tour after a hiatus of nearly four years.

Industry observers estimate that Hybe will earn more than $1 billion from the sold-out tour, which will take the group to 34 cities around the world.

The company's shares hit a four-year high when BTS announced their world tour in January, adding over 1 trillion won to its market value.

Bang, who played a key role in the group's global expansion, said in a recent interview with Billboard that BTS had become a "tourist attraction... widely recognized and embraced by the global public."

Under South Korean law, those convicted of earning 5 billion won or more in illegal income face a sentence between five years in prison and life imprisonment.

Illegal trading charges

In December 2024, South Korea's financial regulator launched an investigation into allegations that Bang had entered into profit-sharing agreements with private equity funds before Hybe's market debut, without proper disclosure.

Police allege that Bang had deceived existing investors and venture capital firms into thinking there were no plans for a public listing, convincing them to instead sell their Hybe shares to a private equity fund with which he is allegedly connected.

Bang is suspected of receiving a 30% share of the illegal proceeds, amounting to 200 billion won, when the private equity fund sold its shares after Hybe went public.

Hybe has denied any wrongdoing, arguing that it had provided a copy of the agreement in question to underwriters for its initial public offering, who advised that its disclosure was not necessary.

Bang has also denied any wrongdoing throughout the investigation.

On Tuesday, his lawyers said they "regret" the police request for an arrest warrant. "We will continue to cooperate with all legal proceedings and will make every effort to clearly explain our position," they said in a statement.

Hybe shares fell 2.3% at the close on Tuesday, while the benchmark Kospi index rose 2.7%. Shares in the other three major K-pop conglomerates also fell./ CNA, translated by BBC