Husband Hides Annual Bonuses, Claims 'All Men Do This' [Decision to Divorce]

[The Financial News] A story has emerged about a woman who felt betrayed after discovering her husband had been hiding the fact that he received annual performance bonuses.

On the 26th, a post titled 'My Husband Lied About His Salary' appeared on the anonymous workplace community Blind.
Ms. A is currently on maternity leave after giving birth, while her husband occasionally works from home. She happened to see her husband's pay statement on his computer and discovered he had been receiving performance bonuses without telling her.
Ms. A explained, 'Every month, we spend over 2 million won on loan interest and fixed costs, and expenses for the children are significant as well. Our living expenses are tight, and my husband knows this.'
She continued, 'Last July, he received about 6 million won as a bonus. During the year-end tax adjustment in February, he claimed his salary was reduced by over 2 million won and didn’t contribute a single won to our living expenses, but in reality, he received over 6 million won and got a bonus every year. From what I saw, he received these bonuses in 2023, 2024, and 2025—almost every year.'
Ms. A lamented, 'Over the past two years, the performance bonuses and year-end bonuses he spent secretly add up to more than 15 million won.'

After much deliberation, Ms. A confessed to her husband that she had seen his pay statement. He responded, 'Why did you look at that? Men need to have some cash on hand.' He added, 'I repaid the 2 million won I borrowed from my younger sister when we bought our apartment after getting married, and I either spent or saved the rest.'
He further explained, 'I wanted to buy you birthday presents. Most men do this.'
Ms. A said, 'After giving birth, I try to save even a few thousand won by shopping during sales. There was even a time when I had to use money from our baby’s account because we were short on cash, but my husband never sent me even a single won from his bonus or told me about it.'
She added, 'I have no idea how much he has saved over the years or if he has spent all the money. All the trust I built up until now has collapsed, and I feel deeply betrayed. I have no idea what to do in this situation,' she vented.

Online commenters responded, 'Take control of the finances immediately,' 'Make him account for every won,' 'The sense of betrayal must be overwhelming,' 'That’s too much money to be considered just a secret stash,' 'Check if he’s having an affair,' 'He thinks you’re just sitting at home while raising his children,' and 'This could be grounds for divorce.'
moon@fnnews.com Moon Young-jin Reporter