G-Dragon Awarded 20 Billion KRW Signing Bonus by Galaxy Corporation, Including 10 Billion KRW in Stock Options
G-Dragon recently landed a massive signing bonus when he joined Galaxy Corporation in November 2023—around 20 billion KRW (about $14.5 million). What’s interesting is that half of that, 10 billion KRW (roughly $7.25 million), came as stock options rather than straight cash. This move clearly shows G-Dragon believes Galaxy Corporation is headed for big things.
Right now, Galaxy Corporation is gearing up for an IPO on the KOSDAQ market. They’ve picked Shinhan Securities and Daishin Securities as lead underwriters. Industry experts expect the company’s valuation to hit somewhere around the mid-1 trillion KRW mark (~$720 million) once public. Back when G-Dragon signed his deal, the company was valued at about 470 billion KRW (approximately $338 million). That means his stock gives him just over a 2% stake.
CEO Choi Yong Ho is the largest shareholder with 21.99%. Other big financial investors are heavy hitters like Shinhan Financial Group, KB Financial Group, T Investment, Korea Investment Partners, and Crit Ventures, showing strong institutional backing for Galaxy’s future.
Sources in investment banking say G-Dragon choosing stock options as part of his compensation wasn’t just about money—it was about aligning himself with Galaxy’s long-term vision. The investment banking side notes that this kind of arrangement reflects the artist’s confidence that the company might become a “unicorn” — a private startup worth more than 1 trillion KRW.
An insider from the entertainment sector explained:
"An entertainer accepting stock options as part of a signing bonus shows a symbolic intention to build a strategic alliance with the company," a source said.
If Galaxy reaches its IPO goals, G-Dragon’s equity value could grow between 20 billion KRW ($14.5 million) and 30 billion KRW ($21.6 million), making his stock options potentially worth twice or even three times their initial value.
Known for his tech fascination and boundary-pushing creativity, G-Dragon has been active beyond music. He’s an adjunct professor of mechanical engineering at KAIST, Korea’s top science and tech university. Just last April, he collaborated with Professor Lee Jin Joon on an extraordinary project to beam music into space. Plus, he put together a media art video featured at the Sphere in Las Vegas, and he teamed up with Microsoft to create an OpenAI-powered music video, mixing tech and art in fresh ways.
Galaxy Corporation itself is a relatively new player, founded in 2019. Their focus is all about mixing artificial intelligence and metaverse tech with entertainment. They’ve developed their own AI engines and virtual environments and are eager to build commerce platforms using these new technologies.
The partnership between G-Dragon and Galaxy Corporation seems like more than just a contract deal—it’s a sign of where entertainment and tech are headed, with a star artist betting big on innovative growth.