HYBE to acquire shares worth $335 million in SM Entertainment

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean entertainment company HYBE said on Friday it will acquire shares worth 423 billion won ($334.51 million) in its rival SM Entertainment to strengthen its position in the K-pop industry.

The move comes just days after Kakao Corp said it would acquire a 9.05% stake in SM Entertainment to purse joint projects including global K-pop auditions.

($1 = 1,264.5200 won)

(Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Editing by Chris Reese)