Court approves Homeplus restructuring plan

Homeplus, which is under court-led rehabilitation proceedings, secured court approval Wednesday for its restructuring plan. The rehabilitation proceedings of the country's No. 2 supermarket chain will come to an end once it begins repaying creditors in line with the approved plan. The Seoul Bankruptcy Court held a creditors’ meeting earlier in the day to vote on the plan. After creditors approved the proposal, the court immediately gave it the green light, formally authorizing the retailer to carry out the debt repayment and restructuring measures set out in the plan. “The plan satisfied the requirements for approval, with support from at least two-thirds of creditors,” the court said. It urged the retailer, controlled by private equity firm MBK Partners, to cooperate closely with its employees and business partners and do its utmost to ensure the successful implementation of the rehabilitation plan. MBK Vice Chairman and Homeplus co-CEO Kim Kwang-il, who attended the meeting, apologized to creditors affected by the company’s rehabilitation process. “Our priority under the restru