Homeplus Wins Approval for Rehabilitation Plan, Escaping Liquidation Threat and Starting Repayments

Homeplus has escaped an immediate liquidation threat after a Seoul court approved the supermarket chain’s rehabilitation plan. The decision allows the company to keep operating and begin repaying creditors under the court-approved schedule.

The Seoul Rehabilitation Court said the plan met the requirements of the Corporate Rehabilitation Act. At a creditors’ meeting held the same day, the proposal won approval from 100% of rehabilitation secured creditors, 75.9% of rehabilitation creditors and 100% of shareholders.

Homeplus’s crisis followed its 2015 acquisition by MBK Partners, which used 2.7 trillion won in acquisition financing. MBK converted more than 10 profitable stores into cash through sale-and-leaseback deals, but the move pushed annual rent costs into the 400 billion won range. Funding for online conversion and logistics investment was squeezed, while the decline in offline retail during the COVID-19 pandemic deepened losses after the company turned unprofitable in 2021.

After its credit rating was downgraded in February 2025, Homeplus sought corporate rehabilitation in March. A failed full-company sale and a dispute over 2 trillion won in operating funds followed. The court ordered the rehabilitation process discontinued on July 3, and Homeplus temporarily closed all its stores on July 13 after running out of operating cash. It secured a 2 trillion won debtor-in-possession loan from Meritz Financial Group on July 16 and reopened 67 stores on August 13, recording 116.4 billion won in sales through August 30.

Under the approved plan, senior claims of about 1.2277 trillion won, including those held by Meritz, will be repaid in full by February 2028 using proceeds from property sales. Ordinary trade rehabilitation claims of about 148.8 billion won will be paid in installments from 2032 through 2037. Public-interest claims, including post-rehabilitation payments to suppliers, total about 1.4138 trillion won and will be paid from regular operating revenue. The company’s ability to sell property and restore supplier relationships will determine whether the schedule holds.

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The requirements for approval of the rehabilitation plan under the Corporate Rehabilitation Act have been met.