South Korean court dismisses arrest warrant for Samsung chief

A South Korean court on Thursday dismissed a warrant to arrest Jay Y. Lee, the head of the Samsung Group. [Photo/IC]

Park, who remains in office but stripped of her powers while the court decides her fate, has also denied wrongdoing.

The special prosecutor has accused Lee of paying bribes totalling 43 billion won ($36.70 million) to organisations linked to Choi, a friend of the president who is at the centre of the scandal, to secure the 2015 merger of Samsung C&T Corp and Cheil Industries Inc.

This week, the special prosecutor indicted the chairman of the National Pension Service, the world's third-largest pension fund, on charges of abuse of power and giving false testimony in relation to the deal.

Key Samsung Group shares opened higher following the court's decision: Samsung Electronics stock was up 1.4 percent as of 0045 GMT while shares of Samsung C&T Corp were up 2 percent, outperforming a 0.3 percent rise for the broader market.

HDC Asset Management fund manager Park Jung-hoon said the stock was regaining losses suffered after the prosecution announced its decision to seek an arrest warrant for Lee earlier this week.

"The only thing that has changed is that he now won't be detained," Park said, adding upside for the shares will be limited as the Samsung Group leader will likely be indicted in the future over the charges.