Bang Strikes Back… If He Can Master the Bow First

HYBE IPO Scandal & Witch Hunt

HYBE Chairman Bang Si-hyuk is striking back against a suspiciously timed IPO fraud investigation — but before he faces prosecutors, he needs to master the perfect bow. In Korea, bowing isn’t just etiquette — it’s politics, optics, and survival. In the high-stakes drama of crabs-in-a-bucket politics, Bang’s bow might just be his sharpest weapon yet.

After months abroad (reportedly working on BTS’ comeback), Bang is now facing down accusations from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) that he misled early HYBE investors in the run-up to the company’s 2020 IPO. Prosecutors are now involved, police just raided HYBE headquarters, and the media frenzy shows no signs of slowing down.

But here’s the twist — Min Hee-jin and her loyalists are spinning the chaos into a full-on smear campaign, framing Bang as a corporate villain while painting themselves as angels. The narrative? That this is all a righteous crusade. The reality? A political and media witch hunt that’s using taxpayer-funded investigations as a weapon in the K-pop industry’s nastiest power struggle.

Bang’s company-wide email to HYBE employees struck a humble tone, even reflecting on whether his confidence had been perceived as arrogance. But in Korea, optics matter — especially when it comes to hierarchy. And in a country where bowing is an art form, perception of respect can be weaponized just as much as actual wrongdoing.

If Bang Si-hyuk wants to win this battle, he’ll need more than lawyers and press statements — he’ll need to bow low enough to disarm his enemies, without bending so far that he loses control of the narrative.