South Korea says ordered to pay Elliott $48.49 million over Samsung merger case

SEOUL, Oct 1 : South Korea has been ordered to pay Elliott Investment Management about $48.49 million plus interest after an arbitration tribunal ruled the government's involvement in the 2015 merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries was causally linked to the US fund's losses, Seoul's Justice Ministry said on Thursday.

Here are some details:

• The London-seated arbitral tribunal upheld the same damages as the original June 2023 arbitration award, according to a ministry statement.

• Elliott welcomed the ruling in a statement and said the added costs arising from the remand proceedings brought the total relief to about $113 million, including damages, interest, legal fees and costs.

• The Justice Ministry said in its statement it would closely review the award with relevant agencies, outside counsel and experts and take necessary follow-up measures.

• The 2015 merger between Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries was widely viewed as a key step in cementing Samsung chief Jay Y. Lee's control of Samsung Group after his father, Lee Kun-hee, was incapacitated by a heart attack in 2014.

• The National Pension Service (NPS), then a major Samsung C&T shareholder, voted in favor of the deal, helping secure its approval and paving the way for Lee to become the largest shareholder of the merged Samsung C&T and cement his control of the group.

• Elliott was a minority stakeholder in Samsung C&T and opposed the deal, deeming the terms of the merger unduly unfavourable to the company.

• According to Elliott, the tribunal found that, absent the government's unlawful intervention, the NPS would have voted against the merger and Elliott's losses would not have occurred.

• The fund said Korean shareholders and pension holders were "also harmed by the same conduct that victimized Elliott, as the NPS's coerced vote allowed the impoverishment of Korean citizens for the sake of the enrichment of the Lee family."

• Elliott urged South Korea to comply with the award, and said interest continues to accrue at more than $10,000 a day until payment is made.