Yonhap | 29 July 2025

S. Korea pays compensation to US hedge fund Mason

by Yoo Cheong-mo

SEOUL, July 29 (Yonhap) — South Korea’s government has paid 74.6 billion won (about US$54 million) to U.S. hedge fund Mason Capital following an investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) ruling that ordered it to pay compensation over losses from Samsung’s controversial 2015 merger of two units, the Ministry of Justice said Tuesday.

The case dates back to September 2018, when Mason filed the ISDS suit, claiming that it sustained losses of approximately US$200 million after the Korean government exerted undue pressure on the National Pension Service, a major shareholder of Samsung C&T, to vote in favor of its merger with Cheil Industries.

In April last year, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in the Netherlands ruled in favor of the New York-based fund, ordering Korea to pay compensation of $32 million and a delay charge.

In response, the Korean government filed a lawsuit with the Singapore International Commercial Court in July of the same year to annul the PCA arbitration ruling. But the Singaporean court dismissed the lawsuit earlier this year and the Seoul government decided not to appeal.

The ministry said the payment of 74.6 billion won was made after deducting withholding tax worth about 15.8 billion won.