This article was posted on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 3:55 p.m. on Dec. 18, 2025.
Delivery platform Manna Corporation filed for bankruptcy. Because it went straight to bankruptcy without going through corporate rehabilitation procedures, analysts say the possibility of repaying investments through business normalization has disappeared. Accordingly, investors' funds on the order of 100 billion won are also expected to be written off as losses.
On the 18th, investment banking industry sources said Manna Corporation recently filed a corporate bankruptcy petition with the court. Major investors are also reported to have been notified of the company's bankruptcy filing. The court is expected to schedule a creditors' meeting and creditor investigations in early next year. At the creditors' meeting, resolutions will be made on whether to close operations or continue them.
Manna Corporation is a platform company that integrated seven delivery services. Through its subsidiary Manna Planet, it provided order management and settlement services and expanded into areas such as point-of-sale systems and payments. The model was to receive prepaid delivery fees from affiliated stores in the form of stored credits, then deduct from those credits and pay riders each time a delivery service was used.
Demand for delivery services exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to rapid growth. Revenue rose from 139 billion won in 2020 to 271.9 billion won in 2021. However, rising labor costs, intensified competition and increasing goodwill impairment costs due to delivery platform mergers pushed net income into successive losses. Net loss amounted to 2.2 billion won in 2020, 6.6 billion won in 2021 and widened to 22.4 billion won in 2022. As of the end of 2023, when the audit report was released, accumulated deficit stood at 55 billion won, and the company is now in a state of complete capital erosion.
Manna Corporation, which raised its first seed investment in 2017, received series A funding in 2019 from Korea Investment & Securities and IBK Industrial Bank of Korea. Then in 2021 it held a series B round with participation from Korea Investment Partners, Bailey PE and IBK Securities, bringing cumulative investments to more than 100 billion won.
Payment service company Danal also became the second-largest shareholder by acquiring existing shares held by financial investors for 35 billion won. The amount Manna Corporation must pay is about 62 billion won, reflecting the principal of 35 billion won and an internal rate of return of 15%.
Investors exercised put options on Manna Corporation earlier this year and began reviewing various measures to recover their investments. They reportedly considered filing for corporate rehabilitation while allowing more time by postponing repayment. That was because attempting mergers and acquisitions before approval of a rehabilitation plan could produce a new buyer and potentially allow recovery of at least part of the investment.
However, after Manna Corporation notified that it could not make payments (default) and filed for bankruptcy instead of corporate rehabilitation, the funds available for distribution to investors have become close to zero. An industry source said, "After creditor investigations into Manna Corporation proceed, a bankruptcy trustee is likely to be appointed to organize assets," and added, "Platform companies have few tangible assets such as real estate, so the distribution ratio is unlikely to exceed single digits."