A pretrial detention warrant hearing for MBK Partners Chairman Kim Byung-ju, for whom a warrant was sought in the so-called "Homeplus Co. case," will be held on the 13th.
The Seoul Central District Court said in a media notice on the 8th that the warrant hearing for MBK's Chairman Kim, Vice Chairman Kim Kwang-il (Homeplus Co. co-CEO), Senior Vice President Kim Jeong-hwan, and Managing Director Lee Seong-jin will be held at 1:30 p.m. on the 13th in Courtroom 319 of the West Building.
The Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office's Third Anti-Corruption Investigation Division sought detention warrants on the 7th for Chairman Kim and three other executives on charges including violating the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act.
Prosecutors said Homeplus Co. and its major shareholder MBK predicted a possible credit rating downgrade in Feb. last year but hid it and issued 82 billion won worth of asset-backed short-term bonds (ABSTB), then abruptly filed for corporate rehabilitation, causing losses to bond investors.
Korea Ratings downgraded Homeplus Co.'s credit rating on Feb. 28 last year from "A3" to "A3-." Four days later, on Mar. 4, Homeplus Co. applied to the Seoul Bankruptcy Court for corporate rehabilitation (court receivership).
Homeplus Co., responding to prosecutors' request for detention warrants, said the same day, "The ABSTB at issue was a financial product independently issued and sold by Shinyoung Securities after a separate credit assessment," adding, "Homeplus Co. was not involved in any way in the issuance of ABSTB or in any resale transaction."