HYBE Headquarters Raided Amid Allegations Against Chairman Bang Si-hyuk

On July 24, 2025, the Financial Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police conducted a search at the HYBE headquarters in Yongsan, Seoul, amid allegations that Chairman Bang Si-hyuk deceived existing investors and gained unjust profits amounting to billions of won. This raid follows the issuance of a search warrant by the Seoul Southern District Court on July 23, just a week after the Financial Services Commission's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) reported Bang for violating the Capital Markets Act regarding prohibited trading practices.

The police had previously applied for search warrants on April 30 and May 28, but these were rejected by the prosecution due to insufficient details in the applications. However, the recent warrant was approved as the police provided additional relevant information.

Investigators have been looking into claims that Bang misled investors in late 2019 by stating there were no plans for an Initial Public Offering (IPO), while he was actually pursuing a listing and selling his shares to a private equity fund (PEF) established by an acquaintance. Reports suggest that Bang entered into a contract to share 30% of the profits from the share sale with this PEF, a detail that was not disclosed in the securities registration statement. Following HYBE's IPO, Bang reportedly received several billion won in settlement.

On July 16, the SFC filed a complaint against Bang for violating the Capital Markets Act. After the case was handed over to the prosecution, the police requested the transfer of the investigation on July 18 to avoid overlapping inquiries. Consequently, on July 21, the prosecution directed the investigation to the Financial Supervisory Service's Special Judicial Police.