Homeplus faces bankruptcy as court demands 20 billion‑won funding plan

South Korean retailer Homeplus is in a corporate‑restructuring process and now confronts a court deadline of March 30 to present a 2 trillion‑won (≈ $1.5 billion) financing plan. The court warned that failure to secure the funds could trigger the dismissal of the restructuring and the start of formal bankruptcy proceedings.

The key obstacle is the guarantee from Homeplus’s controlling shareholder, MBK Partners. Creditors led by Meritz Financial Group have approved a 1 trillion‑won DIP loan only on the condition that MBK’s chairman Kim Byung‑ju provides personal backing for an additional 1 trillion‑won. Meritz has argued that without MBK’s guarantee the creditor group lacks a basis to inject more capital.

Homeplus employs roughly 15,400 workers, with about 10,000 having signed a joint petition urging government intervention to prevent mass layoffs. Employees have not received June wages and face uncertainty over severance. If the court lifts the restructuring order, Homeplus’s assets will be liquidated to satisfy creditors, halting any planned sale of its remaining business units.