International tribunal dismisses $566M damages claim by Iranian investor against Seoul

An international arbitration body has dismissed a 770 billion won ($566 million) damages claim by an Iranian investor against Seoul in a case stemming from a failed takeover of a Korean company, the Ministry of Justice said Wednesday.

A panel under The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled in favor of Korea in the case brought by six members of Iran's Dayyani family in 2021, seeking compensation for Seoul's delayed transfer of funds over a prior arbitration, according to the ministry.

The panel sided with Korea in the case and ordered the Dayyanis to pay about 4 billion won to Korea for legal expenses and around 800 million won in administrative fees, the ministry said.

The original case traces back to 2015, when the Dayyanis, a major shareholder of Entekhab Industrial Group, filed for arbitration after Korea's state-run Korea Asset Management canceled a contract to sell a major stake in Daewoo Electronics to Entekhab in 2011.

In a 2018 arbitration, Seoul was ordered to pay 73 billion won plus interest in compensation to the Dayyanis over the failed takeover of Daewoo Electronics. The ruling was finalized in December 2019, with Seoul making payment in April 2022.

The Dayyanis filed a new case in October 2021, claiming damages of 770 billion won from the delayed payment. Seoul attributed the delay to the need for approval from the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

The PCA panel ruled that Seoul did not discriminate against the Dayyanis over the delay, saying the need for OFAC approval was justified considering U.S. sanctions against Iran and the global economic situation, the ministry said.

Yonhap