HYBE: Men Earn 158 Million Won, Women 49 Million Won... Power and Pay Concentrated Among a Few Male Executives

Average Salary per Employee for Men Is Three Times Higher than for Women
Women's Average Pay Has Decreased Compared to Three Years Ago

There are growing concerns that HYBE's average salaries for male and female employees in the first half of this year have diverged more than threefold, running counter to the government's employment equality policy. While the majority of workers handling practical responsibilities in the entertainment industry are women, a distorted structure has become entrenched, in which a male-dominated network at the top monopolizes power and compensation. As a result, the gender-based pay gap among employees continues to widen.

Hive headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

According to an analysis of changes in HYBE's workforce composition and salary data, based on the semi-annual and business reports filed with the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on August 28, a paradoxical decline was observed: as the proportion of female employees increased, the gender pay gap intensified.

As of the first half of this year, the average salary per employee at HYBE (including non-registered executive officers, excluding directors) was 83 million won, up 1.5 times from 54 million won in the same period last year. However, the average salaries of men and women were distinctly different. Male employees (271 regular, 26 contract) earned an average of 158 million won, while female employees (603 regular, 54 contract) received 49 million won, meaning male employees were paid more than three times as much as their female counterparts on average.

Over the past year, while the average salary for female staff increased by 2 million won, the average for male staff more than doubled. In fact, compared to three years ago, the average salary for female staff decreased by 6 million won. In terms of total annual salary paid, the order was reversed in the first half of this year: despite women outnumbering men by more than twofold, the total annual salary for male employees amounted to 45.77 billion won—about 1.5 times higher than the figure for female employees (30.964 billion won). This demonstrates that female employees—who are the driving force behind HYBE's growth and are responsible for much of the practical work—remain thoroughly excluded from appropriate compensation.

The gender pay gap for HYBE employees is even more pronounced compared to its entertainment industry peers. For example, at SM Entertainment, the average salary for male employees in the first half was 76.3 million won, compared to 49.88 million won for female employees; at YG Entertainment, it was 68 million won for male employees and 39 million won for females, resulting in a gap of around 30 million won at each firm. JYP Entertainment showed the smallest difference, with men earning 84.49 million won and women 68.18 million won. Additionally, unlike at HYBE, at all three companies—SM, YG, and JYP—the total annual salary paid to female employees exceeded that paid to male employees, in line with their greater numbers.

Bang Si-hyuk, Chairman of HYBE. Photo by Yonhap News

Key Positions Monopolized by a Few Male Executives... Compensation and Stock Rewards Concentrated at the Top

The widening gender pay gap at HYBE can be attributed to the fact that most of the company's high-salaried executives are men and that stock compensation awarded this year was primarily allocated to male executives. Although HYBE announced last year that the proportion of female executives surpassed 20% and that female managers approached 50%, the absolute number remains low, resulting in minimal impact on overall pay structure. According to the sustainability management report, the number of female executives at HYBE was six in 2023, nine in 2024, and ten in 2025, surpassing double digits for the first time last year. During the same period, the number of male executives fluctuated between 25 and 30, consistently outnumbering female executives by two to three times.

In particular, among non-registered executives included in the first half's salary statistics—such as Chief Operating Officer Kim Taeho, Chief Communication Officer Park Taehee, Chief Financial Officer Lee Kyungjun, and Chief Legal Officer Jung Jinsu—the average remuneration was 6 billion won, with a total payout of 24.3 billion won. Three of these four hold concurrent key executive positions at HYBE’s affiliates, effectively monopolizing boardroom power within the group. Kim Taeho, for example, also serves as CEO of Belift Lab; Lee Kyungjun serves as an outside director of Weverse Company as well as an internal director at nine affiliated companies, including Ador, Source Music, and HYBE America, and works as an auditor at two more, including HYBE Universal. Similarly, Jung Jinsu is an auditor at two companies (including Pledis Entertainment) and an internal director at three others, including HYBE Latin America.

HYBE's board of directors, which is responsible for major decision-making, is also male-dominated. The current board consists of two internal directors, one CEO, one other non-executive director, and six independent (outside) directors, totaling ten registered directors. While some of the six outside directors are women, they only serve as non-standing outside directors not involved in management. The board chair is always the largest shareholder and internal director, Bang Si-hyuk. The fact that the controlling shareholder also serves as board chair has led to criticism that the board cannot effectively supervise management and has been reduced to a mere rubber stamp.

HYBE has stated that its gender wage gap is unrelated to gender. A company spokesperson commented, "We apply the principle of 'pay for performance' equally to all employees, based on results and contributions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.