Hyundai Merchant Marine has become a member of the world's largest shipping alliance 2M.

Korea Development Bank, the main creditor of the financially troubled shipping firm, announced that it signed a memorandum of understanding(MOU) on Thursday on joint operations with 2M, which is led by the world's largest and second-largest shipping firms, the Maersk and the Mediterranean Shipping Company(MSC).

Under the MOU which is a binding membership agreement, Hyundai Merchant Marine will be able to operate under the alliance starting next April if future negotiations on the details and approval procedures run smoothly. 

With the membership, Hyundai has met all the prerequisites set by its creditors to avoid court receivership.

The creditors are now expected to carry out debt adjustments for the troubled firm through debt-for-equity swaps, extended maturity and interest rate revisions.