HYBE’s fraud probe has taken a sharper turn. South Korean police are now pursuing former HYBE executive Kim Joong-dong internationally. He reportedly left for the United States amid the widening 2026 investor fraud case tied to HYBE’s 2019 IPO.
HYBE executive Interpol Red Notice is now at the center of the latest escalation. What began as a domestic investigation is now stretching well beyond Korea.
Why is the Police Seeking Interpol for Kim’s Arrest?
According to multiple reports, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has requested an Interpol Red Notice for Kim. He is HYBE’s former chief investment officer and a reported co-founder of Eastone Equity Partners, the private equity firm repeatedly named in the case. The move came as police also sought an arrest warrant for HYBE chairman Bang Si-hyuk on charges of fraudulent and unfair trading under the Capital Markets Act.
How is Bang Involved in the IPO Profit Case?
Authorities allege Bang misled early investors in 2019 by saying HYBE had no plans to go public, prompting them to sell shares to a private equity fund. HYBE later listed on the stock market, and police suspect Bang secured about 190 billion won, roughly $129 million, through an undisclosed side deal tied to post-IPO profits.
And the timeline has only added to the scrutiny. Bang has reportedly been under a travel ban since August 2025, with a request from the U.S. Embassy in Seoul to lift it effectively rejected. Kim, meanwhile, is said to have made it to the U.S., raising the stakes in the HYBE financial fraud investigation.
Police are treating this as far more than an internal company dispute. With one key figure overseas and Bang facing an arrest warrant push, the case is starting to look like a full international pursuit.
Bang has denied wrongdoing and said he has cooperated with investigators. HYBE has also maintained that its actions were lawful. Still, the Kim Joong-dong flight, the Bang Si-hyuk arrest warrant bid, and the Interpol request have intensified scrutiny of HYBE’s governance and the broader questions this case has raised around accountability in K-pop.
