Amidst the controversy, the public discovered that Cha Eun Woo has in common with famous actor Kim Soo Hyun and the girl group NewJeans, all three of whom used to play the roles of models and ambassadors of Shinhan Financial Group - one of the 5 largest financial and banking groups in Korea.
Shinhan Financial Group chose the girl group NewJeans to become an advertising model from October 2022, just 2 months after NewJeans debuted and achieved resounding success in Korea.
In 2023, NewJeans took on the role of exclusive model for Shinhan's new application "Super SOL".
But in December 2024, after NewJeans announced the unilateral termination of the contract with ADOR company due to conflicts, Shinhan decided not to extend the advertising contract with this group.
Because of the lawsuit with ADOR, NewJeans has had to temporarily suspend operations for more than 1 year to date. In addition to Shinhan, many advertising contracts in other fields of NewJeans have also been canceled or suspended.
Shinhan signed a contract with Kim Soo Hyun to become the brand representative for asset management in June 2024. The actor was also appointed brand ambassador for Shinhan Bank's operations in Vietnam.
This decision is an important step, because this is the first time in 13 years that Shinhan has chosen a model representing the entire group.
At the time of shaking hands with Shinhan, Kim Soo Hyun was already an A-list star with the highest TV drama salary in Korea. In addition, the movie "Queen of Tears" has just aired with record ratings on tvN and caused a global stir.
But in March 2025, Kim Soo Hyun suddenly got involved in a shocking scandal. He was accused by Kim Sae Ron's family of dating the late actress for 6 years, when she was still a minor.
Kim Soo Hyun held a press conference to deny it, and at the same time sued Kim Sae Ron's family and the head of YouTube channel GaroSero (news distribution channel) for defamation, demanding 12 billion won in compensation.
But a series of brands and brands quickly canceled Kim Soo Hyun's contracts or removed advertising. In which, Shinhan removed all advertising featuring Kim Soo Hyun on platforms.
Although the case is still under investigation and there is no final conclusion yet, Shinhan has been under great pressure from public opinion at a time when their top ambassador was involved in a scandal.
Coming to Cha Eun Woo (a member of Astro group), Shinhan cooperated with him from February 2025. The actor appeared in many advertising campaigns of Shinhan until July 2025, when he enlisted.
On January 22, the media reported that Cha Eun Woo was notified by the Korean National Tax Department of being retroactively collected more than 20 billion won (nearly 360 billion VND) in taxes, mainly personal income tax. This is considered a large retroactive amount rarely seen in the Korean entertainment industry.
The fact that Cha Eun Woo, Kim Soo Hyun, NewJeans - Shinhan's ambassadors and models - are all involved in scandals is causing discussion on online communities.
Many people compare Shinhan to "Prada in the financial world", because Prada is often mentioned as a time brand with many Asian ambassadors involved in scandals such as Trinh Sang, Ngo Diec Pham, Thai Tu Khon, Kim Soo Hyun, Nagano Mei, Irene (Red Velvet), Chanyeol (EXO)...
In Cha Eun Woo's case, the Seoul Tax Department conducted a tax investigation into Cha Eun Woo before he enlisted in the army in July 2025. The actor is suspected of evading personal income tax through a "ghost company" established by his mother.
After receiving the notice, Cha Eun Woo's side filed a request to appraise the legality of tax arrears, requesting a review of the level of appropriateness in the conclusion of the National Tax Department.
The male artist's representative said: "Because the leadership of the Fantagio management company is constantly changing, Cha Eun Woo's mother is concerned about the stability of her son's artistic activities, so she decided to establish her own company to directly manage it.
Cha Eun Woo's side also emphasized that this company is not a "ghost company", but a business managing artists legally registered under the law of the cultural and entertainment industry.
