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HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk waits onstage for a commemorative photo at the 64th Korea Employers Federation general meeting held at FKI Tower in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul, on February 20. / Source: Yonhap News

Bang Si-hyuk, the powerful founder and chairman of HYBE, is under investigation for alleged fraudulent transactions — a development that could mark one of the most serious reputational risks ever to hit the K-pop industry.

On July 24, South Korea’s Financial Crime Investigation Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police raided HYBE’s headquarters in Yongsan, Seoul, as part of an ongoing probe. The raid follows a complaint filed by the Financial Supervisory Service, and prosecutors have assigned the case to the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office’s joint financial crimes division.

Bang is accused of misleading early investors in 2019, just before HYBE’s IPO, by falsely suggesting that the listing would be delayed. According to the Financial Supervisory Service, this maneuver allegedly caused those investors to sell their shares at undervalued prices, allowing Bang to collect nearly 2 trillion won (approx. $1.5 billion) in profit when the company eventually went public.

If proven true, the allegations could constitute a violation of the Capital Markets Act — a particularly serious offense under the current Yoon administration, which has vowed a "one-strike-out" policy against market manipulation.

While the investigation is still ongoing and no legal conclusion has been reached, the implications are already alarming. Bang, who once warned against the dangers of “human risk” in entertainment — when a single individual becomes a liability to the system — now finds himself at the center of such risk. Ironically, this is the very dynamic he sought to avoid when restructuring HYBE into a multi-label system and cutting ties with former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin.

The timing could hardly be worse. K-pop is regaining global momentum, with BTS planning a full-member comeback, BLACKPINK launching another world tour, and the animated hit K-pop Demon Hunters drawing international attention. In this resurgence, Bang should have been leading the charge. Instead, his legal troubles are casting a shadow over the industry.

Bang’s public image, once defined by his critique of outdated industry practices and commitment to reform, has shifted. In a 2019 commencement speech at his alma mater, Seoul National University, he described himself as “not ambitious, but full of dissatisfaction,” driven by anger at systemic mediocrity. He urged students to resist compromise and push for change.

Now, it may be time for Bang to revisit that mindset. As HYBE’s top executive and a key figure in the globalization of K-pop, he must reflect on whether he’s become the kind of capitalist “monster” he once sought to challenge — one who achieves his goals at any cost, even at the expense of integrity.