With the termination of Homeplus Co.'s rehabilitation proceedings, how to handle customers' accumulated My Homeplus points has emerged as a key issue. Points can be used like cash in stores and online, but if the company heads toward bankruptcy, they may not be recognized as customer assets with separate safeguards like prepaid balances. Gift cards differ in how they are obtained and regulated, so the actual scope of protection depends on the terms and the usage structure.
According to legal sources on the 8th, the 4th Division of the Seoul Bankruptcy Court (Chief Judge Jeong Jun-young) terminated Homeplus Co.'s rehabilitation proceedings on the 3rd. The court found that the liquidation value exceeded the going-concern value and that a plan to raise at least 200 billion won in operating funds needed to carry out the rehabilitation plan was not specifically substantiated. Homeplus Co. can file an immediate appeal within 14 days, so the termination decision does not immediately mean bankruptcy or the extinction of points.
◇ Used like cash, but may not legally be "my money"
As of the end of February, the audit report shows about 4.7 billion won in contract liabilities related to mileage (points). From a consumer's perspective, points are a cash-like benefit deducted immediately at payment. Legally, however, gift cards purchased with money and reward points earned during purchase may be treated differently.
Gift cards generally start from a different point than accrued points, in that consumers pay consideration to acquire the right. This means it is difficult to treat points, prepaid balances, and gift cards as the same customer assets.
A Homeplus Co. official, asked about whether the points program is registered as a prepaid issuer and whether it has trust, deposit, or surety insurance, said, "That is not information we can confirm at this time," but added, "Points can still be used at the mart for now." The points have not disappeared immediately, but how to view them as a legal right is a separate matter.
Attorney Park Gyu-hee of Barun Law LLC said, "There is academic disagreement over whether rights are recognized for accrued points." However, Park explained, "Depending on the content of the point terms, the possibility of cash redemption, and whether point payments are recognized as a form of price payment with a statute of limitations, there is a possibility they will be recognized as rehabilitation claims or bankruptcy claims."
It is hard to regard Homeplus Co. points as mere discount coupons. If they function to deduct the payment amount, they can be seen as having a certain monetary value. Whether they are considered refundable money and whether they are recognized as claims in insolvency proceedings, however, depends on the scope of use and validity period in the terms, the possibility of redemption, and the claim review process.
◇ If there is little outside use, they likely fall outside prepaid-issuer safeguards
Another issue is whether they are protected under the Electronic Financial Transactions Act. The protection here does not cover all points; it covers prepaid electronic payment instruments used like a means of payment at third-party merchants other than the issuer. If the instrument is issued by a prepaid operator registered with the Financial Services Commission (FSC), the operator must place user funds with an external trust institution or obtain a redemption surety insurance.
What matters is not whether the points are free or paid, but where they can be used. Attorney An Seo-yeon of Lin Law Firm said, "It is more important whether they are prepaid electronic payment instruments usable at merchants other than the issuer than whether they are free points or prepaid balances."
A Homeplus Co. official, asked whether points can be used with external partner merchants, said, "Homeplus Co. points themselves were originally almost never usable outside." On the function to convert to partner points, the official said, "We have to check all the terms," adding, "There are hardly any places where conversion is possible."
If Homeplus Co. points are not a payment method at external merchants but are used mainly within the company's own network, they are more likely outside the prepaid-issuer protection under the Electronic Financial Transactions Act. Attorney An said that even if property rights are recognized for the points, if prepaid-issuer safeguards do not apply, "it will not be easy to obtain relief in actual proceedings as a rehabilitation creditor or bankruptcy creditor."
◇ Termination of rehabilitation does not mean immediate extinction; recovery is difficult if bankruptcy follows
Even if points are recognized as claims, the amount that can actually be recovered may be limited. In rehabilitation proceedings, public-interest claims that must be paid first—such as wages, goods payments, and taxes—take precedence over general rehabilitation claims. In bankruptcy, estate claims, such as the expense of organizing and distributing assets, are paid before general bankruptcy claims.
Attorney Park said, "Points that arose before the commencement of rehabilitation proceedings fall under general rehabilitation claims and are treated as subordinate to public-interest claims." Even if the case moves to bankruptcy, they are likely to be classified as general bankruptcy claims, which rank below estate claims. There are many point-holding customers and the per-person amount is often small, so the time and expense required to file claims and participate in dividends may exceed the actual recovery.
The decision to terminate rehabilitation does not mean the immediate extinction of points. Attorney Park said, "Once the termination decision is finalized, Homeplus Co.'s right to conduct business is restored, so it is expected that the points can be used at operating Homeplus Co. stores." This presumes that operations, payment systems, and the usage conditions in the terms remain in place.
Circumstances change if the case proceeds to a bankruptcy declaration or service shutdown. Whether points can continue to be used or be redeemed may vary depending on the extinction clauses in the terms and the bankruptcy trustee's judgment.