This article was published on the ChosunBiz RM Report site at 7 p.m. on March 19, 2025.
The Fair Trade Commission is closely examining whether there are damages arising from Homeplus's 'settlement with suppliers' and 'use of consumer gift certificates.' The commission believes there is a possibility of issues arising from payment for goods delivered in January, focusing its observation period around early April, when the legal settlement deadline for those payments is due. Furthermore, the commission is accelerating efforts to shorten the payment settlement period in light of this situation.
According to the Fair Trade Commission on the 20th, all departments within the commission related to the investigation of distributors, consumer affairs, and policy adjustments to the Large Retail Business Act are monitoring the potential follow-up impact related to the corporate rehabilitation of Homeplus.
◇ “Monitoring for damage cases starting around the legal settlement deadline in April”
First, the Fair Trade Commission is monitoring whether there are delays in the settlement with suppliers. Under the current Large Retail Business Act, direct purchases must be settled 'within 60 days from the date of receipt of goods,' while special purchases (consignment transactions and lease transactions) must be settled 'within 40 days from the end of the month.' If the deadline is exceeded, interest based on the rate set by the commission must be paid on the overdue amount. Both exceeding the legal settlement deadline and failing to pay overdue interest are subject to the commission's corrective orders or penalty surcharges.
According to the Fair Trade Commission, all payments for December settlements were made normally, and some payments for January have not yet been settled. Homeplus has a total debt of 379.1 billion won incurred in January, of which about 87% (332.2 billion won) has been paid, leaving around 46.9 billion won unresolved. In particular, the fact that the Lunar New Year holiday is included at the end of January poses a concern for suppliers and vendors regarding the large amount of payments that need to be refunded.
The Fair Trade Commission has not identified any cases of unpaid amounts that exceed the legal settlement deadline as of the previous day. However, it is observing the period from late March to early April, when the 60 days from the delivery of items in mid to late January will have passed. This is because a significant portion of Homeplus transactions involves direct purchases.
A Fair Trade Commission official said, “No victims have been identified so far regarding payments exceeding the 60-day period,” and noted, “We are watching to see if there will be instances of payments for sales proceeds not being made by the due date starting around early April.”
The Fair Trade Commission conducted an on-site inspection of Homeplus business sites on the 13th. However, it stated that it does not plan to issue a formal 'investigation' card yet. Since there have been no reports of damage related to suppliers, the conditions for conducting an on-site investigation are not met, and a self-initiated investigation into suspected unfair practices by the commission could cause unnecessary confusion, making it premature at this time.
◇ “Monitoring consumer damage related to gift certificate usage… No issues identified yet”
The Fair Trade Commission is also monitoring consumer damages related to Homeplus gift certificates in conjunction with the Korea Consumer Agency. This is due to instances where some partner companies have refused Homeplus gift certificates. However, the majority (96%) of gift certificates are accepted or refundable at stores, so the commission official believes it will not escalate into a significant issue like the 'Timaf' incident.
Han Ki-jeong, chairman of the Fair Trade Commission, mentioned during an urgent inquiry at the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee on the 18th, “There were about 1 billion won in consumer refund requests for gift certificates sold by Homeplus since the initiation of the rehabilitation process, and it has been confirmed that full refunds were made.”
He also stated that he would examine allegations of unfair practices against small suppliers regarding '1+1 promotional products' and the legality of new product listing incentives (a type of sales incentive received by retailers for displaying suppliers' new products in stores).
◇ “Survey of over 130 retail brands and accelerating efforts to shorten settlement periods”
Meanwhile, the Fair Trade Commission is accelerating efforts to shorten the payment deadlines under the Large Retail Business Act in light of the Homeplus situation. Since last month, the commission has been conducting a comprehensive survey of settlement periods and methods for over 130 retail brands, including Homeplus.
A Fair Trade Commission official stated, “There are concerns that this regulation (40- and 60-day legal settlement deadline) has been in use for too long and is too lengthy, so we are looking into whether it can be improved,” adding, “We are requesting data to make necessary adjustments according to the realities of industry transactions.”
While there have been previous demands in the National Assembly for shortening the settlement cycle and improvements, this is the first time the Fair Trade Commission has taken the initiative to push for it. Internally, there is a perspective that the increased tension in the retail industry triggered by the recent deterioration in Homeplus's management and corporate rehabilitation process could give added momentum to this effort.
Currently, it is estimated that the average settlement period for Homeplus takes about 50 days. This is about ten days shorter than the legal deadline, which poses no problems, but is longer compared to the average settlement periods of other large retailers, such as Emart and Lotte Mart (20-30 days).