Court Grants JTBC Additional Month for Restructuring Negotiations Amid Liquidity Crisis

SEOUL, July 29 (Yonhap) -- A court on Wednesday granted JTBC an additional month to continue negotiations with its creditors on restructuring plans amid the local broadcaster's liquidity crisis. The Seoul Bankruptcy Court extended the deadline for JTBC's autonomous restructuring support (ARS) program to Aug. 30, following its initial approval on June 30. JTBC, an affiliate of media giant JoongAng Group, requested the ARS program when it filed for corporate rehabilitation on June 15, three days after failing to repay 20.6 billion won (US$13.3 million) in asset-backed loans at maturity. The court can suspend rehabilitation proceedings for up to three months and extend the deadline further if significant progress is made. Meanwhile, the court has already ordered corporate rehabilitation proceedings to begin for four other JoongAng Group affiliates that sought court protection on June 14. Megabox JoongAng and Contentree JoongAng must submit their rehabilitation plans by Dec. 1 and Dec. 15, respectively, followed by JoongAng Holdings and JoongAng P&I by Dec. 22.