The co-CEO of Asiana Airlines (OZ, Seoul Incheon), Park Sam-koo, has been forced to resign in the wake of an accounting debacle that saw the airline's auditor refuse to sign off on its 2018 financials citing incomplete information.

The Korea Stock Exchange had given the airline until Tuesday, March 26 to resolve the situation which Samil PwC said it could only do once it had not been provided with enough information to evaluate the airline’s provisional debt relating to the maintenance of leased aircraft, as well as the fair value of stakes in affiliates bought in 2018.

However, according to Reuters, with the requisite information supplied and with Samil PwC's sign-off secured, Asiana was forced to revise its 2018 operating profit down from KRW88.7 billion won (USD77.95 million) to KRW28.2 billion (USD24.92 million), while its net loss increased from KRW105 billion (USD92.28 million) to KRW196 billion (USD172.25 million). The airline also confirmed a debt-to-equity ratio of at least 6:1.

The accounts revision, mounting debt and possible credit ratings downgrades have since raised investor concerns over Asiana’s liquidity position leading to Park's sudden resignation on Thursday.

Park also resigned from his role as chairman of the Kumho Asiana Group and co-CEO of its largest shareholder Kumho Industrial. Kumho Industrial had also failed to secure auditor consent for its 2018 financials.

According to Reuters, Kumho Asiana Group said in a statement that Park had met the chairman of the group’s main creditor, Korea Development Bank (KDB), on Wednesday and asked for help to normalise Asiana Airlines.

In response, KDB said it would work with the airline to improve its financial structure and that it will launch an "emergency management committee headed by the vice chairman of the group" to help normalize the airline's management. It will also look to hire a "respectable person" from outside the firm as the airline's new chairman.