The idol group TWICE and Stray Kids have been nurtured by JYP Entertainment (JYP Ent.), which maintains a stable management system with founder Park Jin-Young as Chief Creative Officer (CCO) and CEO Jung Wook.
However, there is a challenge to address as JYP Partners, a financial company under new technology business, and its investment activities have not yielded results in markets such as the U.S. and China.
JYP was established by Park Jin-Young in 1996 and went public on the KOSDAQ in 2001. For over 20 years, Park has been the face of JYP, overseeing new artist development and production, while holding the position of ‘content decision-maker.’
◇Strong Park Jin-Young and Jung Wook ‘two-top system’… Growth in Korea and Japan
Park is the largest shareholder with 15.37% equity in JYP. CEO Jung Wook and Vice President Byeon Sang-bong hold 0.41% and 0.04% equity, respectively. As of the first quarter of this year, approximately 150,060 minority shareholders own 67.49% equity. With 15.37% equity, Park controls eight subsidiary companies, including JYP Entertainment Japan, Hong Kong, JYP Publishing, JYP Pictures, and JYP Partners.
For about 25 years, JYP has maintained a ‘two-top system’ with Park Jin-Young and Jung Wook in charge of production and management, respectively. Currently, artists representing JYP include Stray Kids, TWICE, NMIXX, and ITZY, whose revenue contribution is estimated at approximately 90%. Thanks to the activities of these groups, JYP’s consolidated revenue increased from about 345.8 billion won in 2022 to 566.5 billion won the following year. Last year, it surpassed 600 billion won, and operating profit exceeded 100 billion won for two consecutive years.
In the overseas market, Japan has shown significant results. In 2019, in collaboration with Sony Music in Japan, a survival program was launched to introduce the nine-member group NiziU, composed of Japanese members, and last year, the seven-member group NEXZ was also formed. Revenue from Japan, which was 39.4 billion won in 2020, surged more than four times to 174.2 billion won last year.
◇Recently, controversy over ‘student records’… JYP struggles with diversification
JYP has established itself as one of Korea’s top three entertainment companies by nurturing artists like Wonder Girls, 2PM, 2AM, and miss A. However, it received criticism for excessive identity verification procedures targeting some audience members during a fan meeting for DAY6.
DAY6 held a 10th-anniversary fan meeting from the 18th to the 20th of this month at Jamsil Indoor Stadium. During this process, some staff members conducted identity verification on fans, checking ID photos against the actual individuals, and requested their addresses and national identification numbers under claims that they needed further verification, including a financial certificate and student records.
JYP expressed, ‘We sincerely apologize to the audience for the inconvenience and damage caused by the identity verification procedure upon entry,’ adding, ‘The identification process intended to distinguish actual viewers from those selling tickets illegally; however, we failed to demonstrate flexibility in our response and management responsibility in this matter.’
In addition to albums and concerts, JYP is diversifying its revenue through fandom-based merchandising (MD) business. JYP is conducting MD activities centered around its subsidiary, Blue Garage, which was established in 2021 under the name ‘JYP360.’
The MD business accounted for 6% of sales in 2021, but grew to 14% in 2022, 20% in 2023, and 22% last year. Last year, it recorded sales of 132.6 billion won, marking the largest scale in history.
◇SM and YG are profitable... JYP faces losses in all investment areas
Despite its ongoing growth, JYP faces challenges, particularly in its investment sector and lack of results in the U.S. and Chinese markets. While JYP established JYP Partners, possessing 100% equity in 2023, it has only seen losses increase.
In its first year, it recorded a loss of about 500 million won, and last year, the loss increased to 580.35 million won. In the first quarter of 2025, a loss of 16.752 million won was also recorded.
In contrast, competitors SM Entertainment and YG Entertainment have shown progress in venture investments.
SM Entertainment’s venture investment company, SM Culture Partners, established in 2022, recorded sales of 3.5 billion won and net profit of 1 billion won last year. It grew nearly threefold compared to 2023 (sales of 1 billion won and net profit of 323.93 million won).
YG established YG Investment early on in 2016 to commence its investment activities. In 2021, it achieved about 22.7 billion won in sales and approximately 13.1 billion won in net profit, performing well. In 2023, it recorded sales and net profit of 12.8 billion won and 6 billion won, respectively. Last year’s sales plunged to 6.6 billion won, resulting in a net loss of 2.41 billion won, yet it demonstrated presence in the investment sector.
JYP Partners showed instability last year, with some investment managers resigning. Some pointed to a decrease in investment execution capabilities due to the departure of operational personnel as a reason for the poor performance. Shortly after acquiring a license for a new technology business, former JYP Partners CEO Park Jin-Oh resigned, and soon after, two more investment managers also left.
During investment meetings at that time, there were discussions suggesting that investment managers' autonomy was limited due to the necessity of reporting content to upper management. The sudden resignation of the CEO and the departure of investment managers hindered progress.
JYP’s investment in the metaverse platform ‘Zepeto’ saw its operator, Naver Z, in losses of 8.8 billion won last year alone. Visual content creator 4BY4 and the music platform ‘FLO’ operator Dreamus Company also recorded losses of approximately 1.2 billion won and about 1.7 billion won, respectively, last year. All of them are invested companies of JYP.
Expanding influence in the U.S. and Chinese markets is another task ahead. JYP established a joint venture with Tencent Music Entertainment in 2016 and introduced the group ‘Boy Story’ two years later. However, due to the impact of the Hallyu Ban, it did not reap any rewards. JYP’s revenue from China was 27.9 billion won last year, a rise of approximately six times compared to 4.8 billion won in 2020; however, it only accounted for 5% of total revenue.
In the U.S., the group VCHA, which launched last year, is preparing for a comeback planned for the second half of the year. Last year’s revenue from the U.S. subsidiary was recorded at 2.4 billion won.
An industry source noted, ‘Due to uncontrollable factors such as COVID-19 or incidents involving artists, there is a possibility of revenue impact, prompting JYP to establish JYP Partners and begin taking an interest in investments to secure stable revenue.’
They added, ‘While the U.S. and China are markets where significant revenue can be expected, the combined effects of political and cultural factors create high entry barriers.’