Kim Soo Hyun’s career and personal life for the past year have constantly been under controversy. His alleged involvement in the late actress Kim Sae Ron’s death made global headlines, significantly affecting the actor’s career. Now his agency, Gold Medalist, which he joined after returning from the military, is also under scrutiny for suspicions of financial deception and fraud. Read on to know more.
Kim Soo Hyun’s Company Gold Medalist Get Embroiled In Financial Fraud Allegations
In official documents, Kim Soo Hyun’s company, Gold Medalist, is listed and owned by Bareun No.2 Investment Association. However, insiders allege that the real owner of the agency is Kim Soo Hyun’s older brother, Lee Bo Re. Sources also claim that Kim owns shares in the company, as he is almost like the face of Gold Medalist, while his brother works behind the scenes, overseeing management.
Controversy arose when the legitimacy of Bareun No.2 was questioned by the authorities. Along with Gold Medalist, they also control a KOSDAQ-listed online education firm, which is currently undergoing police investigation for stock manipulation and tax evasion allegations. The company has denied all of these charges.
What is more strange is that Bareun No.2’s registered headquarters is actually a simple three-story building in Seoul’s Jangwi-dong. On investigation, it was found that the second floor of the supposed headquarters was actually occupied by a medical equipment company, and no signs of the multi-billion-won entertainment agency were found there.
Gold Medalist’s settlement payments to artists raised suspicions as they were significantly lower compared to other entertainment agencies. Audit reports show that between 2020 and 2024, the total payout amount was only 670 million KRW (Rs. 4.23 crores). Though very high, this is a startling figure when compared to the industry standards, where 80–90% of sales typically go to actors.
In 2024, Kim Soo Hyun starred in the K-drama Queen of Tears. The show quickly became a hit in South Korea as well as globally, and the actor signed around 16 brand endorsements at the time, too. The Gold Medalist that year recorded annual sales of 20.0 billion KRW (Rs. 126.4 crores), but the artist settlement fee was only recorded to be 2.70 billion KRW (Rs. 17 crores)
The numbers seem sketchier when compared to other artists’ settlement fees in other entertainment companies. EDAM Entertainment, Soloist IU’s agency, paid her about 33.6 billion KRW (Rs. 212.4 crores) in fees, while ADOR, K-pop girl group NewJeans’ agency, paid the band (Rs. 150.44 crores) the same year.
In the Gold Medalist’s case, it needs to be noted that entertainment expenses surpass payouts to its own artists. Gold Medalist has responded by saying that settlement details are personal information and therefore not disclosed. In their statement, the agency said, “Artist payments are included in service revenue costs. It is misleading to calculate settlements solely based on the ‘payment commission’ line in our statements.”
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However, many experts remain sceptical. Most agencies openly reveal settlement data through audits, making Gold Medalist’s pay disparity extremely unusual.
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