Bang Si-hyuk, chairman of K-pop powerhouse HYBE, has appeared for police questioning regarding allegations of illicit trading.

Bang appeared at Seoul Metropolitan Police's office in western Seoul's Mapo District for an interrogation related to suspected violations of the Capital Markets Act.

Speaking to reporters, Bang said that he was sorry for causing concern and that he would cooperate with the police investigation.

In 2019, ahead of the company’s initial public offering(IPO), Bang and other executives allegedly deceived investors into believing that the IPO would be delayed, persuading them to sell their shares to an investment company set up by a private equity fund established with the HYBE executives' capital. 

Bang is suspected of having brought in more than 100 billion won illegally after the IPO went through and the investment company sold its shares.