Opposition lawmaker seeks order compelling attendance as retailer plans to defer most supplier repayments until 2030
MBK Partners Chairman Michael ByungJu Kim has declined to attend a parliamentary audit on Homeplus, prompting an opposition lawmaker to seek an order compelling his appearance.
According to the National Assembly’s Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups Committee on Monday, Kim submitted a written explanation Sunday for his planned absence from Wednesday’s audit of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.
Kim said he does not participate in individual portfolio companies’ management and that Homeplus is being run by its administrator under court supervision during rehabilitation. He proposed that Homeplus CEO and court-appointed administrator Cho Ju-yeon appear instead.
Rep. Woo Jae-jun of the opposition People Power Party, who requested Kim’s testimony, said the explanation did not establish an unavoidable reason for his absence.
“Given the seriousness of unpaid bills owed to small businesses supplying Homeplus, Kim must attend the audit,” Woo said.
Woo plans to ask the committee Tuesday to issue an order compelling Kim’s attendance. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea also supports examining responsibility for the Homeplus crisis, though the committee has yet to decide on the order.
The dispute comes as Homeplus’ rehabilitation plan proposes deferring most repayments to suppliers until 2030. Unpaid supplier bills total about 503.2 billion won, with 0.5 percent scheduled for repayment by February 2028, 20.3 percent by February 2029 and the remaining 79.2 percent by February 2030.
The schedule has raised concerns about whether suppliers can withstand the prolonged wait.
Kim appeared at last year’s National Policy Committee audit, where lawmakers questioned his responsibilities as head of Homeplus’ controlling shareholder. He was named an audit witness again this year over the retailer’s rehabilitation and losses suffered by merchants operating inside its stores.
silverstar@heraldcorp.com
