Korea fears wave of debt scandals

The scandal of SK Global understating $1.2bn of losses threatens to open up a Pandora's box of WorldCom-like accounting irregularities in Korea

Executives cooking books. Indictments. Police line-ups. Plunging markets. The drama unfolding at South Korea's SK Group is about as juicy as it gets in the business world. It is also as disturbing. As investors peel away the layers of deceit that allowed SK Global to understate 2001 losses by at least $1.2bn, they may not like what they find. The scandal may open a Pandora's box of WorldCom-like accounting problems at conglomerates that tower over the economy. Nothing less than Korea's post-Asian crisis recovery could be at risk. The bond market tells the story. The dollar-denominated ...