The government announced on the 23rd that refunds were made for 44.5 billion won worth of products for which consumers made payments on TMON and WEMAKEPRICE (hereinafter referred to as Timep) but were not delivered, as well as gift certificates for which pin numbers were not issued. Credit card companies and payment gateway (PG) companies prioritized refunds for unused general products and gift certificates where pin numbers were not issued. The government plans to coordinate with sellers and PG companies to share the expenses for refunds on travel, lodging, and airline tickets that have not yet been refunded. Adjustments for gift certificates currently under application totaling 10 billion won will commence soon.
The government, on the 23rd, presented a report titled 'Support results and future action plans for the WEMAKEPRICE-TMON incident response measures,' which included this information, during an economic relations deputy ministers' meeting and a price relations deputy ministers' meeting chaired by Bom Kim, the first deputy minister of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.
According to the government, the total amount payable that WEMAKEPRICE and TMON failed to pay to sellers due to the Timep incident has reached 1.3 trillion won. The total number of affected businesses stands at 48,000. The scale of consumer damages involves 21,000 individuals and totals 23.4 billion won. WEMAKEPRICE and TMON have been undergoing corporate rehabilitation procedures since September of last year, with a court-appointed administrator expected to prepare a rehabilitation plan by February.
In the Timep incident, consumer damage from gift certificates was significant. Timep sold gift certificates in bulk at discounted prices to inject much-needed funds. However, the unsettled status emerged. Contracted companies disallowed the use of the gift certificates sold on Timep, rendering the gift certificates purchased by consumers as worthless instruments.
In the process of preparing consumer damage measures, credit card companies and mobile payment service providers decided to prioritize refunds for products where consumers made payments but did not use, as well as for gift certificates for which pin numbers were not sent to users. The scale of these products amounts to 44.47 billion won.
For travel, lodging, and airline tickets that have not yet been refunded, the government has decided to support consumer dispute procedures. Earlier, the Korea Consumer Agency's Consumer Dispute Mediation Commission decided in December of last year that WEMAKEPRICE, its sellers, and PG companies must collectively refund the payment amounts to the victims. The refund ratio stipulates that sellers will bear a maximum of 90% of the payment amounts, while PG companies will take on up to 30%.
However, the mediation plan lacks enforcement power, which raises the possibility that sellers and PG companies may not accept it. The government plans to support collective lawsuits if they do not accept the Commission's decision. For gift certificates that were issued pin numbers but blocked from use, adjustment procedures will begin next month.
Continued liquidity support will be provided to small and medium-sized enterprises and small business owners that suffered damage without receiving settlement amounts for transactions conducted through Timep. Previously, the government supported affected SMEs and small businesses with emergency management funds totaling 488.5 billion won and extensions on maturity dates. It will continue to provide emergency management stability funds through the Small and Medium Business Administration. To aid the recovery of small businesses that received financial benefits last year, the government prioritizes special funds for second-chance initiatives through the Korea Small Business Development Center. The interest rate will be offered at 3.58%, reduced by 1 percentage point from 4.58%, and the limit will be raised from 70 million won to 100 million won.
The government is preparing fundamental institutional improvement plans to prevent a recurrence of similar incidents. It intends to ensure that the amendment to the 'Large-scale Distribution Industry Act' passes quickly in the National Assembly. This amendment includes the provision that 'online intermediary transaction platforms that generate revenue exceeding 10 billion won annually must settle payments within 20 days from the confirmation date of purchase and manage 50% of the sales proceeds separately.' Additionally, plans are in place to strengthen oversight of PG operations, with efforts to ensure that the amendment to the 'Electronic Financial Transactions Act' is swiftly passed in the National Assembly.