LG Group, the former parent of the country's top credit card firm, said it was offering between 180 billion won and 264.3 billion won (HK$1.35 billion and HK$1.98 billion) - up to about a third of the 770 billion won creditors had sought from the group - to bail out LG Card.

Creditors said they could not accept the offer and would wait for the group to put forward a higher figure.

``I don't understand how they came up with such numbers,'' said Ryu Heui Kyoung, senior deputy general manager at creditor Korea Development Bank's corporate finance department.

``It is not even worth considering.''

Creditors have been struggling to cobble together a US$1.15 billion (HK$8.97 billion) bailout for the credit card company with nearly seven million active customers.

They have threatened to liquidate the company on Wednesday if a deal was not reached. It was not clear if the deadline would be extended.

LG Group said it would work with creditors to reach an agreement based on the proposal, and if creditors could not accept it they should make a fair and rational counter offer after talks with legal and financial consultants.

Shares in LG Card closed up 3.4 per cent at 15,200 won, outperforming a 0.66 per cent rise in the broader market, on hopes creditors and LG Group would eventually strike a deal.

Analysts said they did not expect creditors to let the troubled card issuer go under, given that their losses could be greater.

``Investors believe LG Card's creditors and LG Group will avoid the worst scenario,'' Samsung Securities analyst Oh Hyun Seok said.

``However, if they cannot agree to the rescue plan, the markets could be hit hard.''

LG Card needs a cash injection by the end of the year to avoid its shares being delisted next year, a move creditors say would trigger massive debt redemption requests and bankrupt the company.

The Korea Stock Exchange can delist a company if its debt exceeds its assets for two years running.

LG Card owes 12.6 trillion won in loans and debt securities, including 6.6 trillion won in uncollateralised debt.

Creditors have been struggling to put together a new rescue package after LG Card narrowly escaped bankruptcy in January following a US$4.5 billion bailout from creditors and LG Group.

They have asked LG Group's family owners and its affiliates to contribute at least 770 billion won by converting LG Card debt into equity.