HYBE’s Alleged Contract Terms With Min Hee Jin Exposed, Sparking Massive Outrage

New details from court have revealed why Min Hee Jin pushed for a renegotiation with HYBE, and fans are shocked at the terms she was reportedly bound by.

The exposed terms have sparked massive outrage and strong reactions from Korean netizens.

According to recently revealed trial discussions, Min’s contract with HYBE required her to remain at ADOR until November 2026. As long as she stayed employed or continued to hold shares in the company, she was prohibited from pursuing any outside ventures.

Out of her 18% stake, 13% could be sold back to HYBE under a put option, but the remaining 5% couldn’t be sold without HYBE’s approval. This meant she was effectively locked in unless HYBE allowed her to sell.

Under the contract, Min has the right (a put option) to sell 13% of her 18% ADOR stake to HYBE. However, the remaining 5% cannot be sold to anyone without HYBE’s approval, as clearly stated in the contract. There is also no way for her to give up this stake. With this ‘5% ADOR stake’ acting as a shackle, HYBE could indefinitely extend Min’s non-compete restriction.

— Trial Discussions

Min reportedly described the arrangement as leaving her “tied to HYBE for life,” pointing to the 5% stake as the main issue. She asked for a revision of the shareholder agreement last year, but negotiations broke down.

HYBE had allegedly offered to remove the restrictions on the 5% stake — but only if Min agreed to extend her mandatory tenure at ADOR from 2026 to 2032. By then, she would be 53 years old.

Her side later presented a recording of conversations with HYBE executives and lawyers from January 2024 as evidence. Testimonies in court suggested HYBE knew the terms were controversial, with one witness even accused of backtracking after the existence of the recording was mentioned.

In the comments, most netizens have been outraged. However some have also pointed to the fact that at the end of the day, Min signed the contract herself.

• “Hope that thug of a trash company gets completely exposed.”
• “Unbelievable how a contract that ended in 2026 magically stretched to 2032…”
• “But if it’s a contract with HYBE, wouldn’t experts have gone over it at the time?”
• “Come on, lol. She signed it herself and even had lawyers with her back then. Kind of funny.”
• “She basically got scammed into a job.”