Top-ranking executives and others at an accounting firm that handled domestic disclosures for a foreign-affiliated listed company are being investigated by financial authorities over suspected unlawful gains of several hundred million won from using tender offer information, the financial investment industry reported on the 27th.
Multiple employees and executives, including top-ranking executives of the Korean-American accounting firm, are being investigated over suspected misuse in stock trading of information on a planned tender offer and material information prior to disclosure concerning SBIフィンテックソリューションズ, a Japanese KOSDAQ-listed company. The previous day, the joint response team seized relevant materials and also conducted a search of the premises.
The joint response team is reviewing business materials and internal documents of the Korean-American accounting firm on suspicion that it received and traded on undisclosed information. The case is unusual for an accounting firm handling domestic disclosure agency services, and the scale of the unlawful gains could increase as analysis of the seized materials progresses. The unlawful gains are currently estimated to be in the range of several hundred million won, but are also expected to potentially expand to KRW 1 billion or more.
Hanmi Accounting Corporation is a mid-sized firm ranked among the top 20 in South Korea and has provided audit services for listed companies and M&A support. Korea Investment & Securities is acting as agent for the tender offeror in handling tender offer subscriptions and settlement, and its materials were also subject to seizure. The investigation is expected to focus on the effectiveness of internal controls and the channels through which information was shared.