HYBE Chairman Bang Si Hyuk has reportedly filed a lawsuit against Min Hee Jin, the former CEO of ADOR and current CEO of ooak Records, seeking repayment of a loan worth approximately 4.21 billion won ($3.2 million).
The dispute became a formal civil lawsuit after Min objected to a court payment order requiring her to repay the money. The case comes from a 3.7 billion won ($2.7 million) loan that Min borrowed from Bang in 2023 to purchase shares in ADOR.
Biz Hankook reported that the Seoul Western District Court approved Bang’s application for a payment order in May. The order required Min to pay him 4.2106 billion won ($3.2 million). Bang had filed the application in April to recover the loan.
A payment order allows a court to require someone to pay a debt without holding a full trial. However, the debtor can challenge the order through a formal objection.
Min filed an objection in July. Her objection led the case to proceed as a civil lawsuit.
The lawsuit was officially filed with the Seoul Western District Court on July 28th. The court later transferred the case to the Seoul Central District Court under the terms of the loan agreement between the two parties.
The loan dates back to March 2023, when Min purchased 573,160 ADOR shares from HYBE for approximately 3.7 billion won ($2.7 million) . The purchase gave her a 17.8% stake in the company. She borrowed 3.7 billion won from Bang to finance the deal.
A separate lawsuit over the share purchase and the termination of the shareholder agreement also confirmed the loan. The court issued its ruling in that case in February.
The current lawsuit seeks 510.6 million won ($380,000) more than the original loan amount. That difference matches the simple interest calculated at an annual rate of 4.6% over three years on the 3.7 billion won principal.
South Korean tax law uses an annual rate of 4.6% to calculate potential gift tax benefits when someone borrows money from another person at no interest or at a rate below that threshold. However, the actual interest rate and repayment terms in Bang and Min’s loan agreement have not been confirmed.
The lawsuit comes after Min won a separate legal battle against HYBE over her put option. She had sued the company to receive payment for her shares under the terms of their shareholder agreement.
In February, the Seoul Central District Court ordered HYBE to pay Min approximately 25.595 billion won ($19 million). The court also dismissed HYBE’s lawsuit seeking confirmation that the shareholder agreement had been terminated.
After winning the first trial, Min proposed ending the dispute with HYBE. She offered to give up her claim to approximately 25.6 billion won ($19 million) in exchange for ending all civil and criminal disputes between the parties.
Her proposal also called for an end to lawsuits and complaints involving NewJeans members, external business partners, and former ADOR employees. However, HYBE appealed both rulings concerning the share payment and the shareholder agreement.
>> Min Hee Jin Offers to Walk Away From $17.8 Million in Return for Ending All Lawsuits
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