It seems like the past few days have gone crazy in the K-Pop world as the big b@ttle between SM and HYBE is extremely intense. One party wishes to gain its rights as an official shareholder of the company while the other party does not want to empower its competitors.

Although the side that seems to be facing the crisis more than SM and their fans and artists, HYBE is also the subject of many people's curiosity. Recently, in an interview abroad, president Bang Si Hyuk, founder of Bł₲ Ⱨł₮ Entertainment and now HYBE gave some of his views on these controversies.

Below is the opinion of President Bang about the direction and goals of HYBE:

In February, it was reported that SM Entertainment and Kakao had shaken hands. Later, it was further reported that founder Lee Soo Man did not accept the agreement and was about to sue the directors of SM Entertainment.

On February 10, HYBE announced that it had purchased shares of Lee Soo Man, becoming the largest shareholder in the company. However, it received a bad response from people working at SM Entertainment from employees to CEOs, who called it a "hostile takeover" from HYBE founder Bang Si Hyuk.

The uncompromising dispute continued as SM called for dissent to empower HYBE and wanted Kakao to take over. Meanwhile, HYBE is looking to quickly arrange internally to start their strategies and plans with SM as the largest shareholder.

Amid all the chaos, Bang Si Hyuk recently sat down for an interview with CNN and discussed everything going on after he and HYBE bought a stake in SM Entertainment. This appears to be Bang Si Hyuk's first public interview since this issue arose.

At the beginning of the interview, everything seems to be started very lightly. The host even tried to see if he had a chance to become an idol. But soon, host Richard Quest did not go around and mentioned the topic that fans are desperately wanting to hear.

He explained that many people think that HYBE is trying to "dominate" the entire K-Pop industry. While it may seem extreme, it's what fans have pointed out after the company acquired not only SM's shares but also many of its sub-brands and major online platforms like Vlive.

When asked why he wants SM Entertainment despite the views of the company's co-CEO. Bang Si Hyuk refuted the claims and explained, “It wouldn’t be correct to say that we’re trying to take over the whole industry,” even explaining that it is misinformation.

Bang PD said that: "For example, people are saying that there will be a serious oligopoly (a state of limited competition) in the music market. But you need to analyze where music is being sold."

Bang Si Hyuk explained that despite the public's thoughts and prejudices, the fact that sales in кσяєα including HYBE and SM combined still cannot monopolize the K-Pop industry.

He continued: "You might assume that it’s sold mostly in Korea, excluding all international orders, even through purchasing companies, with all the CDs sold in Korea, both SM and HYBE combined, it’s very difficult for us to monopolize the market."

Richard Quest then referred to the idea of a share buyback by HYBE as a “hostile deal,” with everyone wanting different things. As always, Bang Si Hyuk went straight to the point, explaining, “I believe it’s crucial to clarify terms first". He believes that the idea of a "hostile deal" has a clear meaning that needs to be understood.

Bang Si Hyuk emphasized: "In economics, it basically refers to a case where a company is collected in the market against the will of a major or oligopolistic shareholder. However, we took over their stake with the consent of the major shareholder through due process."

And the last part of the host story mentioned whether Bang PD will have any way to deal with the objections coming from the heads of SM. Bang Si Hyuk then shared his own concerns about SM Entertainment's management and internal disagreements. Although the number of shares is not an issue, Bang Si Hyuk believes that a joint meeting is necessary and can help solve SM's issues.

He mentioned: "Only when the support is obtained there, we can form the board of directors we want. I have long been sad that a good company like SM does not have a good governance structure. We have almost solved the governance problem through the stake acquisition at this time. And HYBE is well-known to help artists become successful only in the management process without touching their autonomy of their artistic originality."

Before the statements of Chairman Bang, it can be seen that he is trying to settle existing internal problems and clearly express his business views towards SM as the largest shareholder. It still has to wait a little longer when SM's shareholders' meeting officially takes place before the recent scandals can be resolved.