BTS and their management agency, HYBE, have come forward to address the accusations of unfair competition. Both parties completely denied the information that are being shared on social media.
The agency is in charge of managing some of the most successful and well-known K-pop groups such as BTS and NewJeans but accusations of an attempt to create an industry monopoly arose when it was revealed that HYBE wanted to acquire 40% of SM’s stock share. Bang Si-hyuk, the chairman of the company, stated that the information that is circulating on the web is fake and it is just a vile accusation to tarnish their reputation:
I think it’s propagandistic to call it (HYBE’s acquisition of SM shares) as a hostile deal.I believe it is crucial to clarify terms first. The term ‘hostile deal’ is not obscure, but it has a clear meaning. In economics, it basically refers to a case where a company is collected in the market against the will of a major or oligopolistic shareholder. However, we took over their stake with the consent of the major shareholder through due process.
It is important to highlight that if the deal goes through, HYBE would also manage groups like NCT 127, BoA and Girls’ Generation and that is where the concerns in the industry are coming from. Bang elaborate on the situation and assured everyone that this will be beneficial all involved:
I have long been sad that a good company like SM does not have a good governance structure. We have almost solved the governance problem through the stake acquisition this time. You can say that many people are looking forward to the effects of HYBE’s acquisition of SM.
The final decision will be made on March 6 and the complete world of K-Pop is looking extremely close at the situation as it might redefine the future of this industry.
