DK (Dokyeom), a member of boygroup Seventeen, a group under HYPE’s label Pledis Entertainment, has recently been embroiled in controversy.
◆ DK purchased the building for 6.8 billion won after establishing his private corporation Road K
Recently, Daily Economic Star Today reported that Seventeen‘s DK purchased a five-floor building located in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul on August 13 and paid the balance on the 29th of last month. It is reported that after establishing a corporation under his real name (Lee Seokmin), he paid 6.85 billion won under the name of the corporation to purchase this building.
The location (headquarters) of the corporation is registered as a general family house located in Anyang-si, Gyeonggi-do. The business purpose includes ▲ software development and supply ▲ film, video and broadcast program production ▲ management consulting and public relations services ▲ office support services ▲ telecommunications management ▲ real estate sales ▲ real estate rental and sublease business.
◆ Controversy over “real estate trick”…No official statement from Pledis
In the entertainment industry, the method DK used to purchase this building has already been controversial for several times. Many stars were criticized for their trick of buying a building under the name of a corporation and then reselling it to seek market profits.
DK’s case this time is also controversial because what he did is similar to the aforementioned method. It’s true that this cannot be seen as speculation if the building is actually rented and not sold as there are corporations established for the purpose of the real estate rental business.
However, after the corporation was established in July, there is still no information on whether it has carried out any related process such as software development, videos and broadcast programs production, office support services, management consulting, and public relations services… As a result, he is in a perfect situation to be accused of taking out loans to purchase buildings and establishing a paper company (a company that exists only on paper) for the purpose of capital gains. As time goes by, the controversy grows, and complaints continue. However, the agency Pledis has not released any official position on this controversy.
Seventeen released their ninth mini-album “Attacca” on the 22nd of last month and sold 1.33 million copies for the first time (a week after the album was released), making it their fifth consecutive million-seller. Amid SEVENTEEN’s rising fame, DK continues his activities with dubious suspicions. Fans and the public demand an official position, but the agency and DK himself still remain silent.
