Interpark Commerce, which has entered corporate rehabilitation procedures, is struggling to find a buyer. Initially, two overseas corporations submitted letters of intent for acquisition, but they did not proceed to concrete negotiation stages. There are increasing expectations that the rehabilitation procedure will be terminated if the submission of the rehabilitation plan is postponed again.
According to ChosunBiz on the 27th, a corporation operating an outlet in the United States expressed its intention to acquire Interpark Commerce earlier this year. After the major sales payment settlement issue arose last year along with TMON and WeMakePrice, Interpark Commerce entered rehabilitation procedures, and interest in the acquisition from the U.S. corporation raised expectations for business normalization, but it did not progress to specific negotiations.
Nol Universe (Yanolja) partitioned the Interpark shopping and book sector into Interpark Commerce in 2021. In 2023, Qoo10 Group acquired Interpark Commerce.
A distribution corporation from Vietnam has also submitted a letter of intent to acquire Interpark Commerce. This corporation reportedly showed interest but withdrew without proceeding with formal procedures such as pre-acquisition mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Interpark Commerce has been extending the submission period for the rehabilitation plan six times and is experiencing difficulties in preparing it.
Like TMON, which was acquired by the fresh food dawn delivery specialist Oasis Market, Interpark Commerce is in a state of having almost no assets.
As of February of this year, the total liabilities amounted to 133.664 billion won, while total assets were 22.851 billion won, indicating that liabilities exceeded assets. With a liquidation value of 17.1 billion won, it appeared higher than the ongoing corporate value, which reflects future revenue assuming the corporation continues operations. Moreover, there are almost no assets such as real estate, and there is a shortage of cash.
Corporations from the United States and Vietnam also entered due diligence with acquisition intentions, but the shortage of assets and high liabilities acted as burdens that prevented the transaction from being finalized. The low market share of Interpark Commerce and the lack of differentiation were also considered.
Even if Interpark Commerce succeeds in M&A, there are claims that the creditor repayment ratio will be similar to or lower than that of TMON. The repayment ratio for TMON is about 0.76%. TMON's unsettled transaction receivables are approximately 745.6 billion won, but the repayment amount according to the rehabilitation plan was limited to around 5.6 billion won.
In this regard, the Interpark Commerce side stated, 'If M&A is successful based on liquidation value, the creditor repayment ratio is estimated to be about 13%.'
With nearly a year without finding a buyer, the possibility of terminating rehabilitation procedures is gaining weight. Although the submission of the rehabilitation plan has been extended until September 4th, it will mark one year since the initiation of the rehabilitation procedures when November arrives. As the submission of a rehabilitation plan capable of entering practical execution stages seems distant, the termination of rehabilitation is being considered.
If the rehabilitation procedure is terminated, Interpark Commerce will have to adjust its debt relations with individual creditors outside of court supervision. There will be the possibility of individual enforcement actions such as seizure or provisional seizure, and depending on the circumstances, this could lead to bankruptcy procedures or private restructuring.
A source familiar with the situation noted, 'If the value obtained from liquidating all company assets is greater than the value derived from continuing to operate the corporation through M&A, then M&A will proceed; otherwise, the rehabilitation process will be terminated.' It is said that a realistic approach is emerging to terminate the rehabilitation process, as Interpark Commerce has a higher liquidation value.
Since April, Interpark Commerce has changed the service name of the Interpark shopping and book platform to 'BIZLE-BizleBooks.' When Interpark Commerce was sold to Qoo10 Group, it obtained the right to use the Interpark Shopping and Interpark Books brand names from Nol Universe for three years. However, following the 'T-MEP' incident, the brand image was damaged, and a request to suspend the use of the brand name was received from Nol Universe.