Ahead of BTS's Full Group Comeback, Hive Grants 3 Billion KRW Worth of Shares to Employees

Restricted Stock Units Granted to 32 Employees
Hive Hits 52-Week High... Multiple Positive Factors

Hive recently granted its employees restricted stock units (RSUs) worth over 3 billion KRW.

According to the Financial Supervisory Service's electronic disclosure system on May 25, Hive disposed of 7,678 common shares to its employees on May 20 at 250,000 KRW per share. Previously, on March 12, Hive had also disposed of 4,464 common shares to its employees. Through these two transactions, Hive granted a total of 12,142 shares as RSUs to 32 employees. The total value amounts to 3,003,550,000 KRW.

Regarding this, Hive explained, "Following a board resolution in March, we granted 12,142 treasury shares to 32 employees as RSUs," adding, "The shares were transferred from the company’s treasury account to the securities accounts of the recipients."

RSUs are a system in which employees are granted shares free of charge upon meeting certain conditions. Alongside stock options, they are a representative stock-based compensation tool used by companies to attract key talent and encourage long-term performance. Generally, employees must serve for a certain period or achieve specific performance targets to receive them. While stock options grant the right to purchase shares at a certain price and allow employees to realize gains as the stock price rises, RSUs are a compensation method that takes into account both performance achievement and continued employment.

In December last year, Hive granted 16,396 treasury shares to 34 employees, and to date, the company has disposed of a total of 28,538 shares, amounting to 5.8 billion KRW.

Hive headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jinhyung

The securities industry also holds a positive outlook on Hive. This year, as all members of BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan) are discharged from military service, the group will resume full-fledged activities. As a result, Hive’s stock price, which had dropped to 209,500 KRW on April 8, climbed to 286,500 KRW at the close on May 23, showing an upward trend. This marks a 52-week high.

There are additional positive factors. Lee Sunhwa, a researcher at KB Securities, said, "There is strong momentum from the aggressive expansion of the new artist pipeline, the scaling up of major artists' concerts, the start of world tours by younger artists, and the diversification of monetization methods on the Weverse platform."

Hive is also expected to benefit from the lifting of China's Hallyu ban. Lim Sujin, a researcher at Daishin Securities, stated, "If the Hallyu ban is lifted, there will be a significant influx of new fandom. More important than the proportion of the existing Chinese fandom is the mega IP Hive possesses, making Hive the biggest expected beneficiary of the Hallyu ban lift."