SEOUL — The South Korean government has announced a plan to provide over 560 billion won in liquidity to assist small vendors affected by the recent payment delays from online marketplaces TMON and WeMakePrice.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the decision came after an emergency task force meeting in response to the crisis caused by the marketplaces' failure to meet their financial obligations. The financial strain was attributed to their owner, Singapore-based Qoo10, which faced liquidity shortages following aggressive expansion and merger activities. The two platforms have accumulated unpaid bills totaling approximately 210 billion won, a figure that is expected to rise.
The government's support package includes 200 billion won from public institutions for small merchants and an additional 300 billion won in credit guarantee funds. Furthermore, 60 billion won will be made available for travel agencies that have been severely impacted by these delays. Additional measures include extensions of tax payment deadlines and assistance in finding new business channels.
First Vice Finance Minister Kim Beom-seok emphasized the government's commitment to mitigating the damage by leveraging all available resources to support affected customers and sellers. Meanwhile, Qoo10's founder and CEO Ku Young-bae pledged to secure $50 million by August to address the issues, although the Financial Services Commission has expressed doubts about the sufficiency of this amount.
Amidst these developments, South Korean regulators have begun an investigation into the two firms, and a group of customers, led by local attorney Shim Joon-seop, has filed a police complaint against Qoo10's CEO and executives from TMON and WeMakePrice, accusing them of fraud, embezzlement, and breach of duty.