HYBE Pursues Simultaneous Subsidiary Restructuring and Massive Share Donation

HYBE is advancing both subsidiary restructuring and employee compensation initiatives at the same time. Along with the restructuring of its gaming subsidiary DreamAge, Chairman Bang Si-hyuk has donated a personal stake worth 254.5 billion won to the company free of charge to fund employee compensation.

A HYBE human resources official suggested that some employees participate in a program to be reassigned to other departments within the headquarters, but this process required them to go through another application phase similar to open recruitment without any guarantee of employment.

DreamAge explained that while the past three years were focused on expanding the organization’s scale, it is now time to prioritize performance and profitability. The company stated it is adjusting its strategy to increase operational efficiency rather than expand its size. It also mentioned that resources are being reallocated efficiently around its key project, “Architect,” within the framework of organizational management.

However, industry observers note that this process differs from typical organizational restructurings. They say it was carried out primarily through individual interviews without official announcements or group emails, with minimal written documentation. Particularly, since DreamAge lacks an independent HR department and HYBE’s headquarters manages HR, finance, and general affairs functions collectively, it is reported that the actual interviews were conducted by HYBE’s HR team.

Chairman Bang Si-hyuk has donated a total of 254.5 billion won worth of his personal HYBE shares to the company twice this year. After donating 546,120 shares (approximately 209.2 billion won) in March, he donated an additional 192,126 shares (approximately 45.3 billion won) on the 20th. HYBE stated that the purpose of these donations is to provide funds for performance-based compensation for employees at the company and its subsidiaries.

Following these donations, Chairman Bang’s shareholding decreased to 12,247,734 shares, accounting for about 28.4% of HYBE’s total issued shares. HYBE has used part of the received shares for employee compensation and decided at the end of March to sell 101,619 shares of its own stock for the same purpose. As a result, HYBE recorded an operating loss of 196.6 billion won after accounting for 255 billion won in stock compensation costs in the first quarter; its adjusted operating profit, excluding these costs, was 58.5 billion won.

Some analysts interpret Chairman Bang’s actions as a strategy to manage ownership-related risks. He has been under police investigation since last year on charges of violating the Capital Market Act (fraudulent market manipulation). The police suspect he misled existing investors by claiming there were no plans for an IPO in 2019 while selling shares to a private equity fund founded by an acquaintance, despite HYBE already being in the process of preparing for an IPO at that time. The police have summoned Chairman Bang five times since September 2025 for questioning and conducted a search at HYBE’s headquarters in July. They applied for two arrest warrants, but both were rejected by the prosecution.

Given the high importance of key personnel in the entertainment industry—especially as HYBE focuses on expanding into overseas markets such as the United States and Japan and strengthening its platform business—the retention and recruitment of employees significantly impact business performance. In this context, large-scale stock compensation for employees is seen as effective in boosting internal cohesion and motivation. Notably, this massive free share donation marks the first time it has occurred since HYBE’s listing, underscoring the importance of managing employee morale at this stage.