Key Takeaways
- • The National Assembly audit runs from the 6th to the 27th of next month, with retail and food sector issues slated for the Trade, Industry, Energy and SMEs, Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Fisheries, Science and ICT, and Finance committees.
- • MBK Partners Chairman Kim Byung-ju is set to be summoned over the Homeplus crisis, which avoided liquidation after the Seoul Bankruptcy Court approved its rehabilitation plan on the 2nd of this month.
- • CJ CheilJedang and Samyang Foods were fined by the Fair Trade Commission for price-fixing in flour and starch/starch sugar, and Lotte Chilseong may face questions on the domestic B2B sugar pricing structure.
- • Coupang was fined 624.681 billion won by the Personal Information Protection Commission over a data breach at the end of November last year, and its CISO Brett Anthony Mattis is expected to testify.
- • Industry insiders fear the audit will focus on criticizing executives rather than producing institutional alternatives, citing partisan disputes limiting substantive outcomes.
Summary
Tensions are rising across the retail and food industries ahead of next month's National Assembly audit, which runs from the 6th to the 27th, according to political circles and industry sources cited by MoneyToday. Major issues including the Homeplus crisis, food-sector price-fixing and Coupang's personal data breach are expected to dominate. Industry insiders are concerned that, as in past years, the audit will center on criticizing companies rather than formulating institutional alternatives.
The Committee on Trade, Industry, Energy and SMEs plans to summon Kim Byung-ju, Chairman of MBK Partners, as a witness during the Ministry of SMEs and Startups audit to question him on the Homeplus crisis. Homeplus avoided liquidation after the Seoul Bankruptcy Court approved its rehabilitation plan on the 2nd of this month, but debt repayment and mergers and acquisitions remain open challenges.
The Committee on Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Fisheries has summoned Cho Yeong-sik, Vice President of CJ CheilJedang; Lee Un-ik, CEO of Samyang Foods; and Park Yun-gi, CEO of Lotte Chilseong. CJ CheilJedang and Samyang Foods were fined by the Fair Trade Commission for price-fixing in flour and starch/starch sugar, so questions on those practices and recurrence prevention are expected. Lotte Chilseong, as a major buyer of sugar from manufacturers, may be asked about the price formation structure of the domestic B2B sugar market.
Coupang faces scrutiny in the Science and ICT Committee, which will summon Brett Anthony Mattis, its Chief Information Security Officer, and possibly in the Finance Committee, whose witness list is not yet final. Coupang was fined 624.681 billion won by the Personal Information Protection Commission after a data breach at the end of November last year. The Korea Fair Trade Commission conducted an on-site investigation into suspected Large Retail Business Act violations, which Coupang refused, citing lack of prior notice. GS Retail and Lotte Home Shopping are also set to face questions on the re-approval system for TV home shopping, and witnesses may be drawn from Maeil Dairies and Ourhome, where worker fatalities occurred, and Starbucks Korea over its "Tank Day" marketing campaign.
Industry concern centers on the audit becoming a forum for criticizing executives rather than shaping policy. Sources argue that partisan disputes between ruling and opposition parties and competition for attention will limit company representatives' answers and hinder substantive institutional improvement. Last year's Finance Committee audit illustrates the pattern: Kim Byung-ju faced continued criticism over alleged "fleecing" of investors and MBK Partners' market influence rather than Homeplus solutions, and Coupang representatives before the Trade Committee described settlement-improvement programs while still facing criticism over abusive management practices. An industry official said the audit's recurring atmosphere stems from "one-sided scolding and criticism of companies," and called for a venue for constructive dialogue between companies and political circles.
The Committee on Trade, Industry, Energy and SMEs plans to summon Kim Byung-ju, Chairman of MBK Partners, as a witness during the Ministry of SMEs and Startups audit to question him on the Homeplus crisis. Homeplus avoided liquidation after the Seoul Bankruptcy Court approved its rehabilitation plan on the 2nd of this month, but debt repayment and mergers and acquisitions remain open challenges.
The Committee on Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and Fisheries has summoned Cho Yeong-sik, Vice President of CJ CheilJedang; Lee Un-ik, CEO of Samyang Foods; and Park Yun-gi, CEO of Lotte Chilseong. CJ CheilJedang and Samyang Foods were fined by the Fair Trade Commission for price-fixing in flour and starch/starch sugar, so questions on those practices and recurrence prevention are expected. Lotte Chilseong, as a major buyer of sugar from manufacturers, may be asked about the price formation structure of the domestic B2B sugar market.
Coupang faces scrutiny in the Science and ICT Committee, which will summon Brett Anthony Mattis, its Chief Information Security Officer, and possibly in the Finance Committee, whose witness list is not yet final. Coupang was fined 624.681 billion won by the Personal Information Protection Commission after a data breach at the end of November last year. The Korea Fair Trade Commission conducted an on-site investigation into suspected Large Retail Business Act violations, which Coupang refused, citing lack of prior notice. GS Retail and Lotte Home Shopping are also set to face questions on the re-approval system for TV home shopping, and witnesses may be drawn from Maeil Dairies and Ourhome, where worker fatalities occurred, and Starbucks Korea over its "Tank Day" marketing campaign.
Industry concern centers on the audit becoming a forum for criticizing executives rather than shaping policy. Sources argue that partisan disputes between ruling and opposition parties and competition for attention will limit company representatives' answers and hinder substantive institutional improvement. Last year's Finance Committee audit illustrates the pattern: Kim Byung-ju faced continued criticism over alleged "fleecing" of investors and MBK Partners' market influence rather than Homeplus solutions, and Coupang representatives before the Trade Committee described settlement-improvement programs while still facing criticism over abusive management practices. An industry official said the audit's recurring atmosphere stems from "one-sided scolding and criticism of companies," and called for a venue for constructive dialogue between companies and political circles.
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