Hwang Young-woong's cash sponsorship controversy.."There is nothing wrong with the tax review"
Jul 20, 2025
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SBS 'Curious Story Y', which aired earlier on the 18th, highlighted the joint purchase process of Hwang Young-woong's album and the details of money transactions among fans.
According to the broadcaster, Hwang Young-woong returned after releasing an album after six months of self-reflection after voluntarily dropping out due to the controversy over assault and school violence in the past. Fans who supported it reportedly raised about 6.1 billion won in large-scale joint purchases, and some even used loans or living expenses.
However, since then, controversy has spread due to the situation of cash withdrawal through the fan cafe's bank account and the issue of accounting uncertainty. The fan cafe's general manager acknowledged the cash delivery, but did not clearly explain where it was used, and the agency said it was voluntary support from fans and that the gift tax was processed.
As the controversy over cash sponsorship arose after the broadcast, the law office leap on the 19th was through Hwang Young-woong's fan cafe "The withdrawal details were a normal procedure for delivering donations. For some amounts, gift tax returns and payments have been formally completed, and the central general affairs office has clearly carried out the settlement and confirmed that there are no problems after review by tax experts.
Subsequently, as a result of the tax review on the account, it was confirmed that there was no abnormality, and the details pointed out in the broadcast are partially excerpted and edited from this entire process. Therefore, I clearly state that this is not embezzlement or arbitrary use, but a legitimate procedure to convey the pure heart of the fans."
In the meantime, "We are very sorry for the loss of the honor of 58,000 fan cafe members who sincerely support us due to incorrect reports from some members. With this incident, the agency will thoroughly inspect the internal system and establish a transparent and reliable operating system so that there is no misunderstanding or distrust in the future."
▶Next is the full text
Hello, I'm Leap from the law firm that is in charge of legal advice for singer Hwang Young-woong.
Regarding the SBS "Curious Story Y" broadcast on July 18, 2025, I would like to express my deepest sympathy for the confusion and concerns that fans must have felt.
In addition, as a legal representative, I am informing you of the clear facts on the issues covered in this broadcast as follows.
1. The withdrawal details were normal procedures for the donation
The account details repeatedly withdrawn by KRW 1 million mentioned in the broadcast are financial records generated in the process of delivering donations voluntarily raised by fans from all over the country.
- The account was managed by the fan cafe management team by collecting donations,
- Apart from the joint purchase of the album, the donation was a voluntary sponsorship made prior to that.
- Cash withdrawals were carried out several times due to restrictions such as ATM withdrawal limits,
- It was confirmed that the entire amount was delivered to the singer by the fan management.
- For some amounts, gift tax returns and payments have been officially completed,
- The Central Executive Director clearly proceeded with the settlement and confirmed that there was no problem after review by a tax expert.
The tax review of the account confirmed that there was no abnormality, and the details pointed out in the broadcast are partially excerpted and edited from this entire process. Therefore, let me be clear that this is a legitimate procedure to convey the pure heart of the fans, not embezzlement or arbitrary use.
As the contents of the donation of other singers were mentioned on the broadcast, it was a donation delivered before the activity after expressing the intention to reject several times in the process of conveying the fans' hearts, but a large donation was collected because it is a Paradise fan cafe with an exceptionally large love for the singer. We will correct the wrong culture and take special care not to raise this issue again.
2. The request for the right to object before the show was made only two days ago
On July 16, 2025, the broadcast sent an official letter asking the agency to confirm the facts only two days before the broadcast. This is an example of requesting only minimal counter-argument after we have already finished interviewing and editing informants, and we are very sorry that the basic principle of broadcast production, 'Enough counter-argument opportunity', was not guaranteed.
In addition, the broadcast chose a one-sided composition without sufficient communication with the current agency or fan management, including interviews with the singer's former agency officials. Such an approach can give a biased impression to the viewer, which in turn risks distorting or misleading factual relationships.
※ For your information, even in early 2025, the program is a biased broadcast without fact-checking, with related companies suffering social store and business damage and taking legal action.
3. Future legal action plans and words to our fans
In response to the distorted reporting that defames the agency and fans, our law firm Leap is already in the process of taking the following legal action.
- a complaint to the Media Arbitration Commission
- Civil and criminal complaints against SBS and related informants
- Request for correction of broadcast content
In addition, I would like to inform you that we have already sent out a certificate of content and applied for a ban on broadcasting before broadcasting, and have sufficiently warned and responded to the unilateral nature of broadcasting.
Lastly, I would like to thank the fans for their unchanging and consistent support.
We are very sorry that the reputation of 58,000 fan cafe members who sincerely support us has been tarnished due to misinformation from some members.
With this opportunity, the agency will thoroughly inspect the internal system and establish a transparent and reliable operating system so that there is no misunderstanding or distrust in the future.
The truth will surely come out. We will never sit idly by and watch the defamation of the fans who support us sincerely with claims that are different from the truth and the defamation of the singer. We will do our best to protect the honor of Hwang Young-woong and his fans.
Thank you.
tokkig@sportschosun.com
