A Homeplus store in Seoul (Im Se-jun/The Korea Herald) MBK Partners has come under mounting political and regulatory pressure as Seoul's presidential office, lawmakers and financial authorities intensify scrutiny of the private equity firm's management practices amid Homeplus' court-led restructuring and possible liquidation.Hong Ihk-pyo, senior presidential secretary for political affairs, recently described MBK Partners' merger and acquisition practices as "unethical," criticizing the firm's takeover of Homeplus and its role in the retailer's decline."We need some restrictive measures in terms of finance," Hong said during a meeting with reporters earlier this week. "The Homeplus crisis is a representative case showing what can happen when a merger and acquisition, a kind of necessary evil in the capital market, goes wrong and creates serious side effects."Hong said financial authorities should pursue institutional reforms to prevent similar cases, warning that the Homeplus crisis could lead to mass job losses and significant losses for suppliers and other business partners.Asked whether the government could intervene, Hong said authorities could consider financial support if a credible buyer emerged, but added that no such prospect currently exists. For now, he said, the government's realistic role is to support workers affected by unpaid wages and small suppliers left exposed by the retailer's collapse.Lawmakers have also stepped up pressure on MBK.The National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee agreed Monday to pursue a parliamentary hearing into Homeplus' restructuring to examine responsibility for the retailer's collapse.Rep. Min Byung-deok of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, who heads the party's Euljiro Committee on Economic Justice, described the Homeplus case as "a disaster caused by a predatory private equity model that acquires companies through heavy borrowing before stripping their value."The pressure comes as financial regulators are also moving toward sanctions against MBK. The Financial Supervisory Service on July 2 decided to recommend disciplinary action over the firm's handling of Homeplus, with local reports saying it maintained its earlier recommendation of a suspension from duty. The Financial Services Commission will determine the final sanction after deliberation.MBK has been accused of revising the redemption terms of Homeplus' redeemable convertible preferred shares around the time of the retailer's credit rating downgrade, potentially undermining investor interests. The firm denied any wrongdoing, saying the changes were intended to improve Homeplus' financial structure and protect investor value.The Homeplus case has also fueled broader debate over leveraged buyouts and the short-term, profit-driven management strategies often associated with private equity firms.Nepa has come under renewed scrutiny over concerns that MBK's debt-financed acquisition increased the outdoor apparel maker's financial burden. At Korea Zinc, the labor union has also cited the Homeplus case while warning against speculative capital during the company's ongoing management dispute.