HYBE chairman Bang Si Hyuk directly stated that the acquisition of SM Entertainment shares is "not a hostile takeover."

In an interview with CNN released on March 3, Bang Si Hyuk stated, "I think it's propagandistic to call it (HYBE's acquisition of SM shares) as a hostile deal." Bang Si Hyuk explained, "I believe it is crucial to clarify terms first. The term 'hostile deal' is not obscure, but it has a clear meaning. 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."

Regarding SM's takeover, Bang Si Hyuk explained, " However, we took over their stake with the consent of the major shareholder through due process."

The HYBE chairman then continued on to criticize the current condition of SM Entertainment management and stated, "Rather I think it is a serious problem that management wants to run a distributed company as they wish without a major shareholder."

He elaborated, "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 this time. You can say that many people are looking forward to the effects of HYBE's acquisition of SM."