Shares of Hybe, the agency behind global K-pop sensation BTS, tumbled sharply after the boyband’s highly anticipated comeback concert drew far fewer fans than expected.

The free event, held Saturday at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, featured all seven BTS members – Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook – performing together for the first time since their 2022 hiatus for mandatory military service. Around 104,000 fans attended, less than half of the 250,000 originally anticipated.

Hybe’s shares, which had climbed in recent months ahead of BTS’s world tour and the release of their new album ‘Arirang’, fell 15.5% on Monday following the turnout.

The concert, marking the start of BTS’s 82-date world tour, was live-streamed on Netflix to over 190 countries, including South Korea. Analysts suggest the online broadcast, along with strict crowd management measures, may have contributed to the lower in-person attendance. Netflix is expected to release viewership data later this week.

Meanwhile, Big Hit Music, Hybe’s music label, announced that ‘Arirang’ sold 3.98 million copies on its first day. At the historic Gwanghwamun Square, BTS performed tracks from the new album as well as hits like ‘Butter’ and ‘Dynamite’.

BTS remains Hybe’s main revenue driver, and the extended hiatus had previously weighed on the company’s profits. With K-pop’s global popularity surging, the band now faces competition from fellow groups like Blackpink, Seventeen, and Stray Kids, as well as fictional competitors such as Netflix’s ‘KPop Demon Hunters’, which is reportedly planning a world tour next year to promote a sequel of its hit film.

With inputs from BBC