Homeplus Co. said on the 25th it will begin a pre-authorization M&A for the remaining business unit, excluding the supermarket division "Homeplus Express (hereinafter Express)."
The remaining business unit consists of headquarters, online, and hypermarkets. If a third-party corporations without existing hypermarkets acquires it, the buyer is expected to immediately rise to No. 3 in the domestic hypermarket industry.
The sell-side advisor is Samil PwC, the same as for the Express sale. It has reportedly sent an official teaser to potential buyers and begun the full-scale sale process.
This pre-authorization M&A will proceed through an open bidding process. In particular, it is expected to be conducted on the condition of approval by the Seoul Bankruptcy Court.
Earlier, on the 7th, Homeplus Co. signed a business transfer agreement for Express with NS Shopping, a distribution affiliate of Harim Group. Express operates 287 stores nationwide.
Total assets are currently estimated at about 317 billion won, and net worth at about 146 billion won. It has reportedly secured about 126 billion won in cash on the condition that NS Shopping succeeds to part of Express's debt. However, it is expected to take about two months for the actual sale proceeds to flow in.