HYBE founder and Chairman Bang Si-hyuk has sent a memo to his employees seeking to allay concerns about the mounting controversies surrounding the K-pop company.
It follows two recent raids by South Korean authorities at HYBE’s Seoul HQ, one in relation to allegations Bang himself misled investors ahead of the company’s Initial Public Offering in 2020, the other by the country’s National Tax Service.
In the memo, which has been leaked to Forbes, Bang says that so far he’s refrained from speaking publicly about the allegations made against him personally, “out of respect for ongoing legal proceedings”, even though it has been “difficult” to remain silent.
The HYBE Chairman has been working from the US of late, seemingly focused on international projects as well as the big reunion of the company’s most important global act, BTS. But that, he says in the memo, hasn’t helped as the various controversies have started to escalate in recent weeks.
Admitting that his recent stint overseas has “been prolonged”, Bang says “I understand how my absence may have contributed to confusion and frustration”. Which is why, he then explains, he will now “return to Korea to fully and transparently work with investigators and put these allegations to rest”.
Bang is accused of fraudulently misleading investors about the HYBE IPO in 2020, giving them the impression that plans to take the company public may be delayed, even though the process for a stock market listing was already underway. That allegedly resulted in some investors selling their shares to an equity fund that had connections to Bang, a move that he then profited from once the IPO went ahead.
The investigation into those claims was referred to prosecutors last month, after which the authorities showed up at HYBE HQ. Just days later tax officials arrived at the company’s offices in relation to a separate investigation reportedly into whether or not any taxes were evaded around the IPO.
Other senior HYBE execs have spoken or written to employees about these controversies already - Chief Legal Officer Jung Jin Soo sent his own memo late last month - but this is the first time Bang himself has addressed the issues.
Bang’s memo doesn’t really go into the specific allegations made against him or HYBE, or explain how he is responding to those allegations. Instead he apologises for the negative impact the controversies are having on HYBE employees and artists, including distracting them from their work, and the public from their outputs and successes.
“I feel a deep sense of regret knowing that our members and artists, who should be focused solely on their creative and professional goals, might be suffering because of this situation”, he writes. Therefore, he is “committed to a swift resolution to these matters, so that you may focus on what you do best: creating and sharing entertainment and culture that resonates around the world”.