South Korean court clears Kakao founder of stock manipulation charges, Yonhap reports

SM Entertainment Co

21/10/2025 03:34

SEOUL, Oct 21 (Reuters) - A South Korean court on Tuesday cleared Kakao Corp 035720.KS founder Kim Beom-su of stock manipulation charges, Yonhap news agency reported, citing a court official.

In August, prosecutors had sought a 15-year jail term and a fine of 500 million won ($350,000) in August.

Kim was arrested in July last year on charges of being involved in manipulation of the stock price of SM Entertainment 041510.KQ in 2023 to hinder a competitor, Hybe 352820.KS, from acquiring it. He was released on bail in October 2024.

($1 = 1,421.4800 won)

 (Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Heejin Kim; Editing by Tom Hogue)

 ((Heekyong.Yang@thomsonreuters.com;))