Prosecutors Seek 15-Year Prison Term for Kakao's Kim Beom-su in Appeals Trial
Kim Beom-su's appeals trial: a summary of the allegations of stock manipulation in the SM acquisition and the prosecution's key sentencing request Ahead of the November 20 ruling, check the key issues, including whether the first trial's not-guilty verdict will be overturned
The prosecution has requested a 15year prison sentence at the appeals trial for Kim Beomsu, the founder of Kakao, who is on trial for allegedly manipulating stock prices during the process of acquiring SM Entertainment. The founder was acquitted in the first trial.
The Criminal Division 41 of the Seoul High Court held the closing arguments hearing for the appeals trial on the 23rd for Kim and the other defendants charged with violating the Capital Markets Act. The prosecution requested a 15year prison sentence, a fine of 500 million won, and the forfeiture of about 127.2 billion won for Kim, and also sought fines and forfeiture for Kakao and Kakao Entertainment.
The prosecution argued that there was an attempt to keep the stock price high in February 2023 during the SM acquisition process in order to obstruct the tender offer by rival company HYBE. In contrast, the trial court in the first instance acquitted them, saying it was difficult to conclude that Kakao's trading activities constituted price manipulation. Kim's side denied the charges, saying there were no unlawful instructions, and the appeals court ruling is scheduled to be handed down on November 20.