"Were you involved in our idol leaving the group?"...National Pension Service swamped by overseas K-pop fans

[Financial News] Some overseas fans of the K-pop group Enhypen have recently launched a collective protest against the National Pension Service (NPS), a major shareholder of HYBE, over member Heeseung's departure from the group. As a result, some of NPS's operations were temporarily paralyzed.

On the 18th, Kim Sung-joo, head of the National Pension Service (NPS), posted on Facebook under the title, "The story behind the paralysis of the NPS Center for International Pension Support."
Kim wrote, "Last week, a flood of overseas calls suddenly came into the NPS Center for International Pension Support, temporarily paralyzing its work, and about 1,500 emails poured in over the span of two hours."
He continued, "When we looked into what had happened, we found that, in connection with the issue of a member leaving the K-pop group Enhypen, overseas fans had circulated posts on social media platforms (SNS) urging people to call the National Pension Service, which is a major shareholder of HYBE, to protest." He added, "A post on X (formerly Twitter) urged people to 'protest to the National Pension Service as a major shareholder, asking whether it had been informed in advance by HYBE and whether it is aware of the market value lost due to this decision,' and it included a screenshot of the Center for International Pension Support's consultation phone number."

Kim explained, "The Center for International Pension Support is a department that handles pension support services for foreign workers who come to Korea and for Koreans who work overseas," and added, "Because of this incident, people calling for pension consultations experienced significant inconvenience."
He went on, "The National Pension Service is a long-term investor entrusted with managing the public's retirement funds. It invests in numerous companies in more than 80 countries around the world, but it does not intervene in the management or personnel matters of individual companies," stressing, "Naturally, it does not get involved in the formation of K-pop groups or their member lineups."
He added, "Although this was a brief episode that spread quickly on social media, it was an opportunity to reflect once again on what role the National Pension Service plays as an institution," and said, "NPS will continue to manage the public's precious retirement funds in a stable manner, while also acting with a strong sense of responsibility regarding its social impact and obligations."
Meanwhile, Belift Lab, a subsidiary of HYBE, announced on the 10th through the fan platform Weverse and other channels that Enhypen member Heeseung would be leaving the group to pursue activities as a solo artist.
Belift Lab stated, "Heeseung will be independent from the group Enhypen," and added, "Enhypen will continue its official activities as a six-member group going forward."
Heeseung, under Belift Lab, is expected to continue his career as a solo singer, including releasing a solo album.
newssu@fnnews.com Kim Su-yeon Reporter