KB News Desk
Homeplus said Thursday that Meritz Financial Group agreed to extend 200 billion won ($135 million) in emergency financing to the cash-strapped retailer, keeping its court-supervised rehabilitation alive with only days left before liquidation.
Meritz’s board approved the debtor-in-possession loan Thursday, contingent on MBK Partners chair Michael Byungju Kim personally guaranteeing the debt. Meritz also agreed to cooperate with the subsequent approval of Homeplus’s rehabilitation plan.
The agreement comes days after the Seoul Bankruptcy Court terminated Homeplus’s rehabilitation proceedings and pushed the retailer toward liquidation, leaving a window to appeal until July 20.
Homeplus plans to file an immediate appeal with the court while completing the final stages of its structural overhaul and pursuing the sale of its remaining business units, including headquarters, hypermarkets and online operations, to bring the rehabilitation to a successful close.
“This is not just about raising capital. It shows that the key parties are now aligned behind keeping rehabilitation on track, and if more creditors sign off, the odds of court approval should improve,” said Homeplus in a statement.
The hypermarket chain, which entered temporary closure Monday, also plans to set a schedule for resuming operations in consultation with suppliers once the court formally extends the proceedings.
Meanwhile, two labor unions agreed to help ease the financial burden of closing 37 stores, freeing up funds for restocking and normalizing operations. The Homeplus general labor union urged management to “act now on painful, all-out self-rescue measures” and pressed the company to “bet everything on rehabilitation through sweeping structural reform.”
The breakthrough followed weeks of deadlock between MBK and Meritz over how to split the funding burden. MBK said its decision to guarantee the loan aimed to minimize harm to Homeplus and its stakeholders, including employees, partners and suppliers.
According to MBK, it has already provided about 400 billion won in support to Homeplus through capital contributions, cash infusions and loan guarantees before and after rehabilitation began. With the latest guarantee, its total support now stands at roughly 600 billion won.
