Prosecutors Request Arrest Warrant for Kakao's Kim Beom-su...Defense Team Expresses "Regret" (Comprehensive)

'SM Enter si sejojong' hyomui
Oneun 22il yeongjang siljilsimsa yejeong

The prosecution has requested an arrest warrant for Kim Beom-su, Chairman of Kakao's Management Innovation Committee, who is suspected of manipulating the stock price of SM Entertainment.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 17th, the Financial Investigation Division 2 of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office (Chief Prosecutor Jang Dae-gyu) announced that they have requested an arrest warrant for Chairman Kim on charges of violating the Capital Markets Act. Kim's pre-arrest detention hearing (warrant substantive examination) is scheduled to take place at 2 p.m. on the 22nd.

Chairman Kim is suspected of manipulating the stock price in February last year by setting and fixing the price of SM Entertainment shares higher than the public tender offer price of 120,000 won by its competitor, HYBE.

It is known that during the summons investigation, Chairman Kim stated that he was informed of the agenda to purchase the shares but did not receive reports on the specific process.

The prosecution believes that Kakao purchased SM Entertainment shares at high prices a total of 553 times, mobilizing approximately 240 billion won. During this process, Kakao also failed to report the large-scale stock holdings to the financial authorities.

Kim's legal team stated, "There was no illegal act directed or tolerated in the purchase of SM shares. This case was a normal on-market purchase based on legitimate demand for securing shares for business cooperation purposes," adding, "We regret that the prosecution has requested an arrest warrant. We will sincerely explain during the warrant hearing process."