Seoul - Yoon Se-young, the founder and honorary chairman of Taeyoung Engineering and Construction Co., has appealed to creditors for their support in allowing the company to undergo a debt restructuring program. This request comes as the company faces a significant cash crunch.
According to Yonhap News Agency, including the state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB), the plea was made earlier in the day. Taeyoung, ranked as the 16th-largest builder in South Korea based on construction capacity, applied for a debt restructuring program last week, citing a liquidity shortage due to real estate project financing (PF) loans.
Yoon addressed the meeting, emphasizing the commitment of all executives and employees to save Taeyoung if the creditors provide an opportunity to properly repay the debts. He attributed the company's financial struggles to overconfidence in property projects backed by PF loans.
Yoon projected that Taeyoung could achieve annual sales of approximately 3 trillion won (US$2.3 billion) over the next three years. As of September of the previous year, the company's debts were estimated at around 1.9 trillion won, with a debt-equity ratio of 479 percent.
During the meeting, Yoon presented details of Taeyoung's self-rescue plan. However, Yang Jae-ho, an official from the KDB's corporate restructuring division, deemed the plan insufficient. Speaking to reporters, Yang stated that the current plan does not appear adequate to proceed with a workout and urged Taeyoung to intensify its efforts to repay debts.