South Korea probes major financial crimes involving securities firms and gift‑card laundering

South Korean prosecutors have launched coordinated raids on three securities firms—KB Securities, NH Investment & Securities, and Kyobo Securities—over an alleged 1 trillion‑won stock‑price manipulation scheme targeting the DI‑Dongil share. Investigators seized records and equipment as part of a broader crackdown on market abuse.

In a separate operation, the Seoul Metropolitan Police captured eleven members of a domestic money‑laundering ring that masqueraded as a gift‑card provider to clean roughly 35 billion won of proceeds from an overseas phishing network. Authorities seized about 593.5 million won in cash and two luxury watches worth around 200 million won, and seized assets will be forfeited pending prosecution.