Korea's fair trade watchdog said Monday it issued an administrative notice of proposed revisions to consumer protection guidelines for prepaid installment transactions, aimed at strengthening transparency in operators' management of customers' advance payments. The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) said the proposed revisions would require operators to establish internal guidelines for managing advance payments and draw up a management plan for each fiscal year. In Korea, funeral or travel service providers commonly use prepaid installment contracts, under which customers make a series of advance payments for services to be provided at a later date. Under the proposed guidelines, operators would be required to balance stability, liquidity and profitability when managing advance payments to ensure sufficient funds remain available to provide contracted services and pay cancellation refunds. They would also be required to conduct thorough reviews before investing in high-risk assets, including derivatives. Operators holding 100 billion won ($72.1 million) or more in advance payments would be requ