HYBE Loses $3.8 Million In Embezzlement, Fires And Sues Core “Employee A”

According to an exclusive report from IT Chosun, HYBE has lost over ₩5.00 billion KRW (about $3.86 million USD) to “Employee A“—well known to be one of the core members of the company’s founding and BTS‘s dance instructor.

HYBE Corporation | Yonhap

Employee A is now under investigation for having embezzled tens of thousands of dollars from the company budget, but also for having scammed fellow composers, choreographers, and business partners hundreds of thousands of dollars. In their scheme, Employee A is reported to have stolen HYBE’s identity, as well as using HYBE’s name to solicit investments for developing new official merchandise or discovering new songs.

As of November 17, Employee A is thought to have embezzled and scammed over ₩5.00 billion KRW (about $3.86 million USD) from HYBE and HYBE-related personnel.

Picture for illustrative purposes only. | MBC

HYBE has since terminated the employment and sued Employee A for fraud and embezzlement. According to IT Chosun’s report, HYBE was made aware of the situation back in September and sought professional help to pursue legal action against Employee A.

Insiders have commented that HYBE might have lacked internal monitoring and auditing processes—considering how long Employee A had been able to get away with the financial crime.

HYBE’s current leaders, including CEO Park Ji Won (far left) for HYBE Corporation in Korea. | HYBE

HYBE has responded, “We will show zero tolerance toward the individual who has violated the company rules and regulations. We will take all possible legal action against the individual, as well as make whatever amendments necessary to prevent the same from happening again. All HYBE personnel will go through a work ethic and anti-corruption training, and all HYBE governance structures will undergo strengthening to upgrade internal monitoring and auditing processes.”

HYBE strictly prohibits its employees from gaining personal benefit using non-disclosable internal information. Please beware of possible scammers using HYBE’s name, HYBE employment, and/or relationships with HYBE artists.

— HYBE

Meanwhile, based on the information provided in the IT Chosun report, K-Pop fans are attempting to identify the former Employee A. While some names have been discussed, nothing has been verified as of the report.