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G-Dragon and BLACKPINK’s 2,500 concert tickets seized from scalping ring base, know what happened
A ticket scalping ring was busted in Taiwan for reselling G-Dragon and BLACKPINK concert passes. Fake IDs, hacking tools, and massive markups uncovered in police raid.
A large-scale ticket scalping ring has been busted in Taiwan after illegally profiting from the high demand for G-Dragon's Übermensch World Tour. The group also hoarded tickets for BLACKPINK's upcoming concert, selling them at eye-watering markups.
According to reports from Taiwanese outlets on July 23, Taiwan's Criminal Police Department confirmed the arrest of four individuals. Among them was a man identified as Mr. Liu. The arrests are linked to the illegal resale of tickets for G-Dragon's concerts held at the Taipei Arena from July 11 to 13.
2,500 G-Dragon and BLACKPINK tickets seized
Following a tip-off, authorities raided the group's base of operations on July 15, discovering massive quantities of illicit materials. These included over 2,500 exchange codes and printed tickets for G-Dragon and BLACKPINK concerts.
Authorities also found 5.4 million TWD (approximately KRW 7.7 million or 164,000 USD) in cash. Officials also confiscated 500 tickets for BLACKPINK's Kaohsiung concert scheduled for October. It suggests the ring had already set its sights on future high-profile events.
Scalping syndicate used bots, fake IDs to resell G-Dragon tickets at 10x prices
Investigations revealed the scalping operation went far beyond simple resales. Mr. Liu is reportedly in his 40s. He allegedly collaborated with a Hong Kong-based engineer who utilized a ticketing bot and ID generator to flood online platforms and facilitate bulk purchases. Each ticket cost Liu a commission of 2,000–3,000 TWD (approx. 90,000–140,000 KRW), in addition to the face value.
These tickets were then resold at inflated prices. Entry passes originally worth 800 TWD (around 30,000 KRW) were listed for 9,800 TWD (460,000 KRW). Meanwhile, VIP tickets costing 8,980 TWD ( 420,000 KRW) were flipped for as much as 55,000 TWD (2.58 million KRW).
Liu's team even created fake identification documents to bypass Taiwan's real-name ticketing policy. They station collaborators in hotels near the venues to facilitate transactions and verification on-site.
BLACKPINK 2023 ticket scandal traced to same group
Authorities believe the same group may be linked to a separate scandal that erupted in March 2023. At the time, BLACKPINK's tour tickets, originally priced at 410,000 KRW, were found being scalped for up to 18.78 million KRW, nearly 45 times the original cost.
This case reignites concerns over unchecked ticket scalping in Asia's live entertainment industry. The issue is especially alarming as K-pop concerts continue to see skyrocketing demand.
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