[E-Daily Marketin, Reporter Hur Jieun ] Speculation is growing that the Financial Supervisory Service’s (FSS) Sanctions Deliberation Committee will postpone the agenda item regarding securities firms that sold and issued Homeplus short-term notes (ABSTB) beyond the originally discussed date of late August. As the deadline for approving Homeplus’s rehabilitation plan has been extended to September 4, expectations are mounting that the Sanctions Deliberation Committee’s deliberation will be pushed back to after that date.

According to the financial investment industry on the 20th, the FSS recently sent inspection reports containing findings to securities firms that sold Homeplus short-term notes—including Hana Securities, Hyundai Motor Securities, and Eugene Investment & Securities—as well as to underwriters such as Shinyoung Securities. It is understood that the final level of sanctions has not yet been determined, as procedures—including individual companies’ explanations, advance notice of planned measures, and statements of opinion—typically follow the issuance of the inspection reports.

Previously, FSS Governor Lee Chan-jin attended a Homeplus briefing held by the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee last month and stated, “The investigation into mis-selling (involving Hana Securities and others) is effectively complete,” adding, “We are actively considering remedies.” Subsequently, industry insiders and observers predicted that inspection opinion letters or advance notices could be sent as early as early August, and that the matter could be brought before the Sanctions Review Committee by the end of August.

However, it is understood that the FSS has already sent inspection reports to each securities firm following the conclusion of the inspections, and the individual companies are currently undergoing the process of presenting their defense regarding the level of sanctions. The FSS has been in a recess from its Sanctions Committee meetings until today; given that, typically, prior notice and the procedures for the targeted companies to present their statements and defenses must be completed before a case is brought before the Sanctions Committee, the industry views a late-August hearing as physically tight.

There is also speculation that variables surrounding Homeplus’s reorganization plan could affect the disciplinary committee’s schedule. The deadline set by the Seoul Bankruptcy Court for the approval of Homeplus’s reorganization plan is September 4. This is the statutory deadline and final cutoff date, by which the reorganization plan must be approved with the consent of the creditor group.

Industry sources suggest that, with the direction of Homeplus’s restructuring—as the debtor—not yet finalized, it may be practically burdensome for financial authorities to first finalize the level of sanctions against the securities firms that sold or issued the products. Consequently, there is growing momentum behind the prediction that the disciplinary hearing will be scheduled after the deadline for Homeplus’s rehabilitation plan approval.

Meanwhile, the Homeplus short-term note scandal sparked controversy after allegations surfaced that the securities firms involved continued to sell the products even immediately after Homeplus was notified of its credit rating downgrade last year. A legal battle is ongoing between investors and firms such as Hana Securities—which handled sales—and Shin Young Securities—which led the issuance—over compensation for investor losses and the allocation of liability. Market attention is focused on this matter, as the FSS’s sanctions decision could influence future lawsuits seeking damages.

A financial investment industry official stated, “Not only the severity of the sanctions but also the timing of when the matter will be brought before the board remains uncertain,” adding, “There are also predictions that it may not be easy to reach a conclusion within this year.”