South Korean authorities yesterday arrested Kim Beom-su, the billionaire founder of tech giant Kakao Corp, on suspicion of manipulating stocks during the acquisition of a K-pop agency last year.
It is the latest legal twist for Kakao, which runs South Korea’s largest chat app, after the company and another executive went on trial last year, accused of wrongdoing during the acquisition.
Kim, also known as Brian Kim, is seen as a visionary in South Korea’s digital industry for building the Kakao group from the ground up. The firm’s assets are worth 86 trillion won (US$62 billion).
Photo: Yonhap via AP
Prosecutors said that Kim was involved in manipulating the stock price of SM Entertainment Co in February last year to prevent a competitor, Hybe Co, from acquiring it.
In a statement, Kakao called the situation “unfortunate,” adding that Kakao CEO Shina Chung, would lead efforts to minimize the effects of any potential management vacuum.
Kim has denied the accusations, saying he has never ordered or tolerated any illegal activity, the company said in a statement.
He has not yet been formally charged.
The high-profile tech entrepreneur is the largest shareholder of Kakao, with a 24 percent stake that he and affiliated entities control.
The Seoul Southern District Court approved the arrest warrant to prevent the potential destruction of evidence and because Kim was a flight risk, a court official said.
Kim is being held at the Seoul Nambu Detention Center, a spokesperson for the prosecution said.
His arrest would last up to 20 days, during which time prosecutors would investigate further before deciding whether to charge him, according to South Korean criminal procedure.
The outcome of any case against Kim could jeopardize the Kakao’s control of online bank arm KakaoBank Corp, as the country’s financial rules restrict those convicted of financial crime from owning a stake of more than 10 percent in a bank.
Kakao is also likely to face regulatory scrutiny, making it harder for it to make major decisions on investments in artificial intelligence and overseas business expansion, industry experts said.
Restaurant chain Din Tai Fung (鼎泰豐) today announced it is to close 14 stores in northern China, completely exiting the market by the end of October. Beijing Hengtaifeng Catering Co (北京恆泰豐餐飲), which operates Din Tai Fung restaurants in northern China, said its 20-year operating license expires this year. As the board was unable to reach a consensus on continuing operations, its 14 restaurants in the region are to close by Oct. 31, it said. The company apologized for the inconvenience and disappointment the news would cause among its customers, and said it would provide compensation for its workers. “We continue to be optimistic about
EXPANDING: The European Commission has contributed 5 billion euros in state aid to TSMC’s 12-inch wafer fab in Dresden, Germany, which broke ground on Tuesday Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) on Saturday said that it has received a total of NT$62.5 billion (US$1.95 billion) in subsidies from China and Japan since 2022. In the first half of this year, TSMC received NT$7.96 billion in subsidies from China and Japan after receiving about NT$47.55 billion last year and obtaining NT$7.05 billion in 2022, financial data compiled by the world’s largest contract chipmaker showed. The company, which makes about 90 percent of the world’s high-end semiconductors, said the subsidies were used to finance its investments in Kumamoto, Japan, and Nanjing, China. TSMC owns a 12-inch wafer fab in
STRATEGIC SHIFT: Diversifying away from the volatile flat-panel industry, AUO aims to boost sales contribution from non-panel business to half of total revenue by 2027 AUO Corp (友達) yesterday said it has agreed to sell its idled manufacturing facility and land in Tainan to Micron Technology Inc for NT$7.4 billion (US$231.8 million) as the company shifts strategy to reduce the impact from the boom-and-bust flat-panel display industry. The company expects to book NT$4.17 billion in disposal gains from the sale, it said in a Taiwan Stock Exchange filing. The Tainan factory produced color filters used in monitors, notebook computers and flat-panel TVs before being shut down last year, as AUO sought to optimize its asset utilization. The company has been striving to diversify and broaden its business
Micron Technology Inc has reportedly set its sights on two facilities owned by flat-panel maker AUO Corp (友達) after Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) recently clinched a deal to buy a facility and equipment from Innolux Corp (群創), another major flat-panel maker. Micron, the world’s third-largest memorychip maker, is expected to purchase two AUO plants in Tainan to expand its advanced chip packaging and testing services and high-bandwidth memory production, local media reports said. The two plants were shut down in August last year and AUO is seeking to dispose of the facilities, the reports said. They are expected to cost Micron