ASTRO’s Cha Eunwoo enlists—Fantagio hits major financial trouble
ASTRO’s Cha Eunwoo officially enlisted on July 28, 2025 (KST). Now, his agency Fantagio is “staggering under financial strain,” according to Korean reports.
Fantagio just got slammed with an extra tax bill of ₩8.20 billion KRW ($5.9 million USD) for corporate taxes dating from 2020 to 2024. The payment deadline is October 31.
Then in November, Fantagio faces an even bigger hit. It owes ₩13.0 billion KRW ($9.35 million USD) on bonds maturing, with a steep 7% interest rate. The agency’s stock price has dropped so much investors won’t convert bonds to shares. Fantagio will have to cough up cash.
Fantagio only has ₩11.0 billion KRW ($7.91 million USD) in cash as of March—now it needs ₩21.0 billion KRW ($15.1 million USD) just for October and November.
Industry insiders say Fantagio relied too heavily on a small set of IP, mostly Cha Eunwoo. He accounted for over half its sales in Q3 2023. His military absence means inevitable revenue drops.
Fantagio’s attempt to pivot to K-Drama failed too. The agency raised ₩48.0 billion KRW ($34.5 million USD) in rights offerings in 2021 and 2024 to fund drama productions. But its historical K-Drama, Royal Physician Dae Jang Geum, was delayed. The slump in the historical drama market worsened the losses.
Fantagio spokesperson admitted this about the K-Drama struggles:
“We raised capital for a K-Drama production, but the historical drama market has slumped. Rather than push forward with the original schedule, we are waiting for conditions to improve.”
Fantagio’s preliminary earnings show revenue down 42% to ₩38.1 billion KRW ($27.4 million USD). Operating loss hit ₩2.80 billion KRW ($2.01 million USD), net loss about ₩900 million KRW ($647,000 USD). Third straight year of operating losses, fourth straight year of net losses.
Fantagio insists:
“We are reviewing the tax assessment with legal counsel and considering possible appeals. Discussions are also ongoing about the additional tax burden and CB repayment. We have short-term financial assets that can be liquidated, so this is not a liquidity crisis.”
Cha Eunwoo’s enlistment has left Fantagio scrambling to stay afloat amid mounting debts and loss of their biggest star’s revenue.
