Seoul court orders Homeplus to submit funding plan by next week

SEOUL, June 23 (Yonhap) -- A Seoul court has ordered hypermarket chain Homeplus to submit a plan to secure about 200 billion won (US$130.1 million) in funding by next week as part of its court-led restructuring process, industry sources said Tuesday.

The Seoul Bankruptcy Court recently sent an official notice to Homeplus, its creditors and labor union, requesting a funding plan by June 30, just days before the July 3 deadline for court approval of the retailer's rehabilitation plan, according to sources familiar with the issue.

Private equity firm MBK Partners acquired a 100 percent stake in Homeplus from British retailer Tesco Plc for 7.2 trillion won in 2015. However, the retailer entered court-led rehabilitation proceedings in March 2025 after facing mounting financial difficulties amid a prolonged downturn in the hypermarket sector.

In December last year, Homeplus submitted a rehabilitation plan that included debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing and asset sales. The plan's approval deadline was initially set for March, but was later extended to May and again to July as the court sought additional time to review the progress of asset sales and funding efforts.

A key challenge remains the retailer's efforts to secure emergency operating funds for its remaining stores.

Homeplus has requested a 200 billion-won DIP loan from Meritz Financial Group, its largest creditor. However, Meritz has offered 100 billion won in financing on certain conditions, including legally binding guarantees and additional financial support from MBK Partners.