The Financial Supervisory Service confirmed belatedly that it imposed fines on Nextera Investment Management regarding the controversy over Mr. Park Soon-hyuk, known as 'The Man from Nowhere.'
According to the securities industry on the 4th, the Financial Supervisory Service imposed a fine of 30 million won on Nextera Investment Management in July. Additionally, fines of 9 million won and 6 million won were imposed on the representative of Nextera Investment Management and Mr. Park, respectively.
There are two major accountability issues. First, it became a problem that Mr. Park held both the position of public relations director at Kumyang and the head of investment management at Nextera Investment Management from April 2022 to May 2023. Financial company executives are not allowed to work in a full-time position at another company, and the FSS determined that this rule was violated. When this issue first emerged in September 2023, Mr. Park claimed he only entered into a corporate explanation (IR) agency contract with Kumyang, but this was not accepted.
Mr. Park gained popularity by appearing on various YouTube channels and making bold investment opinions on battery materials. The stock prices of the battery materials he recommended also rose. However, the battery materials subsequently experienced a sharp decline, and Kumyang, where he served as a public relations director, is currently suspended from trading due to a 'disclaimer' in its financial statement audit.
The representative of Nextera Investment Management, Mr. A, also faced sanctions for using five accounts under his name to trade stocks from October 2021 to July 2023. Employees of financial investment companies must use a single account for stock transactions, and those in investment management must notify their affiliated companies of their trading history monthly, which the FSS determined was not adhered to.