[Anchor]
Homeplus, which had been facing the threat of bankruptcy, has revived its hopes for recovery by securing 200 billion won in emergency operating funds. However, there are still many challenges to overcome before its operations can return to normal.
Reporter Jung Jun-ho has the story.
[Reporter]
On July 3, the court terminated the rehabilitation proceedings for Homeplus, citing an insufficient plan to secure 200 billion won in operating funds.
The largest creditor, Meritz Financial Group, and the major shareholder, private equity firm MBK Partners, had struggled to reach an agreement on the funding support plan.
Following mediation efforts from political circles and others, the board of directors of Meritz Financial Group approved a 200 billion won emergency loan today (July 16), contingent on full joint and several guarantees from MBK and Chairman Kim Byung-ju.
Homeplus stated that the foundation for resuming rehabilitation proceedings has been laid and that it will file an immediate appeal to the court by July 20.
If the court accepts the immediate appeal, the rehabilitation process will resume.
Homeplus announced that it would continue operations at temporarily closed stores and that it would negotiate with the labor union regarding costs, such as severance payments arising from the store closure process.
[Ahn Soo-yong / Head of the Homeplus Branch of the Mart Workers' Union: Please join us in ensuring that practical follow-up measures are prepared for management normalization, employment stability, the protection of partner companies and tenants, and the restoration of consumer trust.]
While the path to rehabilitation has opened, there are many tasks left to resolve.
First, the company must receive court approval for its rehabilitation plan by September 4.
Given the dire situation—which led to the temporary closure of the headquarters and stores due to a cash crunch on July 13—the court may demand a more rigorous plan than the one submitted last month.
Restoring broken trust with suppliers is also critical.
[Homeplus Tenant: There are many goods inside (the store), and a lot of food items have come in, so the mall can only function if this is normalized.]
It is also a burden that a significant portion of the operating funds will be used to pay off 930 billion won in public interest claims, such as payments for goods, which must be settled first.
The company needs to raise additional funds by selling stores and real estate, but it remains unclear whether it will be able to receive a proper valuation for these assets due to weakened operational capacity.
(Video Editing: Jung Yong-hwa, VJ: Jung Han-wook)
※
Copying, redistribution, and unauthorized use in AI training are strictly prohibited.