Ex-CEO Min Hee-jin's reinstatement bid rejected by Ador board

Min reveals stalking incidents, death threats, says BTS' V offered support amid dispute against HYBE

By Pyo Kyung-min

Former Ador CEO Min Hee-jin's proposal for reinstatement was rejected during a board meeting, Wednesday. Min, who attended the meeting via video call, was the only one who voted in favor of her reinstatement.

This decision followed the Seoul Central District Court's dismissal, Tuesday, of Min's injunction against HYBE without a formal hearing, stating that her application failed to meet the necessary legal requirements.

It signals a prolonged standoff between HYBE Labels, the parent company of the agency of K-pop girl group NewJeans, and Min.

Min submitted the injunction in September, seeking a special shareholders' meeting at Ador to discuss her reinstatement as the subsidiary's CEO and board director. She argued that her five-year term as CEO and director was guaranteed under a shareholder agreement with HYBE, which she claimed the label had failed to uphold.

HYBE responded by holding a special shareholders' meeting on Oct. 17, where Min was reinstated as Ador's board director but not as CEO. Her term as director, initially set to end on Nov. 1, has been extended for three more years, starting Nov. 2.

The court's decision on Tuesday ultimately deemed Min's request inadmissible, explaining that although HYBE could issue instructions to Ador's board, the board members were under no legal obligation to comply with those directives.

Following the ruling, HYBE described the court's judgment as "wise" and stated it would now focus on "normalizing Ador's operations, advancing its multilabel strategy and supporting artist activities."

Meanwhile, Min's legal representative noted that the court's decision did not rule on the validity of the shareholder agreement made with HYBE, reaffirming that Min would continue to push for reinstatement as CEO.

Jointly establishing Ador in November 2021, Min and HYBE entered into a shareholder agreement, which guaranteed her the position of CEO for five years. The contract also granted her the right to sell 13 percent of her 18 percent stake in the company through a put option.

However, tensions surfaced in April when HYBE launched an audit into Ador's management, accusing Min of attempting to spin off from the parent company.

In response to HYBE's initial attempt to remove her from the CEO role, Min filed for a court injunction to block HYBE's voting rights at a board meeting. In May, the court sided with Min, temporarily preventing her dismissal.

The conflict escalated in July when HYBE announced it was terminating the shareholder agreement with Min, and filed a lawsuit seeking confirmation of the termination. In August, Ador's board removed Min as CEO, appointing Kim Ju-young, an internal director at HYBE, as Min's successor.

What's next?

If HYBE prevails in the ongoing lawsuit, Min is likely to lose her position as CEO permanently, as well as the put option, which is estimated to be worth more than 100 billion won ($72 million).

However, the current situation is not entirely favorable for HYBE, as public opinion has sharply declined following the recent release of internal reports that contained harsh assessments of the idols' appearances.

During the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee audit last Thursday, lawmakers revealed that HYBE had created industry trend reports filled with provocative comments about K-pop idols, which were distributed to top executives at HYBE and its subsidiary labels on a regular basis.

The report contained harsh critiques, including rude remarks such as "too much plastic surgery" and "members are shockingly ugly," sparking public outrage.

In the wake of the controversy, HYBE CEO Lee Jae-sang reportedly sent an internal email addressing the growing backlash to its employees, Wednesday morning, following the court's dismissal of Min's injunction.

"This situation has reminded us that HYBE has much work to do to become a better company and to continue improving the music industry’s environment," Lee wrote. "We now feel a pressing need to reassess whether we have been handling various tasks correctly, tasks that we may have overlooked in the pursuit of achievements."

Also addressing Tuesday's court ruling, Lee added, "We are hopeful for swift, meaningful progress on the renewal of (Min Hee-jin’s) contract as the producer of NewJeans, which remains a priority."

Min's revelations

Meanwhile, after her injunction was dismissed by the court, Min appeared on a live broadcast of music critic Kim Young-dae's YouTube channel later on Tuesday, where she revealed that she had been followed and had even received death threats in the aftermath of the conflict.

"I was followed not long ago. The taxi driver noticed it first. A car was tailing us too closely, so the driver changed routes to test if it was intentional, but the car continued to follow. I got out, took pictures and wrote the license plate number down before immediately reporting it to the police," Min said during the broadcast. "The police caught the person and we now know who it was."

She also revealed that she had received death threats, describing the situation as filled with "bizarre and laughable incidents."

Min went on to explain her reasons for filing the injunction against HYBE to seek reinstatement as CEO.

"It was a move to prove my innocence and sincerity. I'm determined to take this lawsuit as far as it can go," she said. "Since there's no precedent for this kind of case, I estimated my chances of winning the injunction at about 10 to 20 percent ... I saw it as giving HYBE one more opportunity. I hoped that if they were forced to step back, maybe they could put aside their damaged pride and reconsider."

Min also shared a story about BTS member V contacting her amid the conflict. Min had previously worked with V as the producer of his first solo album "Layover" in 2023.

"V sometimes calls me from the military," Min said. "Even though I was going through all of this, he called me in his usual cheerful manner, asking how I was doing. He later told me he was worried about when the right time was to reach out after everything started."

"He's such a warm-hearted person," she added. "I was really moved. It takes a kind heart to do something like that, and I'm truly grateful."