After the Korea Fair Trade Commission rejected the business combination of Lotte Rental and SK Rent-a-Car, Lotte Group said on the 26th that there was "no problem at all with the group's overall financial stability." The group released the statement out of concern it could be swept up again in liquidity crisis rumors that have dogged it in recent years.
In a briefing paper the same day, Lotte Group said, "Lotte Group holds real estate asset worth a total of 53 trillion won, composed of quality assets that can be liquidated depending on market conditions," adding, "We have also secured about 13 trillion won in cash and cash equivalents, so we have sufficient financial stability to respond to short- and mid- to long-term liquidity needs."
As a liquidity crisis erupted in 2024, Lotte Group has been pushing a sweeping restructuring of its overall businesses. It completed the sale of equity in Lotte Chemical's Pakistan subsidiary and its investment in Japan's Resonac, and recently has been advancing efficiency measures for its NCC (naphtha cracking center) operations centered on major petrochemical complexes in Daesan and Yeosu.
It also said it would continue selling Lotte Rental equity. Lotte Group said, "Through consultations with Affinity Equity Partners, we will review various options, including whether additional proposals are possible to resolve concerns by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) about strengthening market dominance."
In 2024, Lotte Group signed a contract to sell a 56.2% equity stake in Lotte Rental to private equity fund Affinity Equity Partners for 1.6 trillion won. The rationale at the time was to secure liquidity by divesting noncore assets.