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| Seen is Bitget's announcement of Army Coin's listing. Screenshot from Facebook |
Controversial token's trading platform denies responsibility
By Park Jae-hyuk
The recent listing of a cryptocurrency named after ARMY, the BTS fandom, on the Singapore-based exchange Bitget has displeased the boy band's agency HYBE, which is considering a collaboration with Dunamu, the Upbit exchange operator, to sell merchandise featuring the K-pop group in the form of a non-fungible token (NFT).
HYBE issued a statement Thursday to emphasize that it is unrelated to the "Army Coin" which was issued without any discussion. This came a day after the cryptocurrency's price showed a 5,000 percent rise during its first trading day, which is attributed mainly to the BTS fandom.
"Photos of BTS to promote the cryptocurrency have been used without any discussion with the group's agency," HYBE said. "We are ascertaining legal violations in this case, including the infringement of the artists' portrait rights, and we will take all possible legal actions against violations."
A few hours after HYBE published the statement, Bitget announced that it is not responsible for the actions. The token's trading platform had written on Facebook earlier this week that Army Coin exists for the benefit of BTS and aims to take care of its members for life.
The exchange operator only promised it will pay close attention and start an investigation, considering concerns over the token.
"After receiving feedback from users, we have taken notice of the official announcement of BTS's agency, HYBE, stating that it is not affiliated with Army Coin," it said. "As a trading platform, all information provided by the project team does not represent our views and opinions of the subject."
This is not the first time for HYBE to warn investors and fans about cryptocurrency scams using the names of the company, its affiliates or artists belonging to the agency. In April, HYBE announced that it was not engaging in any blockchain business, including the issuance of cryptocurrency using the names of its K-pop acts or any of its affiliated companies.
The entertainment agency, however, admitted recently that it is considering investments in Dunamu and forming a strategic partnership with the operator of the nation's leading cryptocurrency exchange.
Sources familiar with this issue expect the two companies to swap stocks worth around 500 billion won ($427 million) to 900 billion won and to issue NFTs related to BTS and HYBE's other acts using Dunamu's blockchain technologies.
The two companies are also considering establishing a joint venture in the U.S. to engage in the "metaverse" business, according to sources.
