Kim & Chang successfully represented a major Korean bank (the “Korean bank”) in a Singapore International Arbitration Centre (“SIAC”) arbitration and a Singapore International Mediation Centre (“SIMC”) mediation initiated by an Indonesian conglomerate.

The dispute arose from a Share Purchase Agreement (“SPA”) entered into between a Korean bank and an Indonesian conglomerate, which had been the controlling shareholder of an Indonesian finance company listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, in connection with the Korean bank’s acquisition of a majority stake in that company. After the Indonesian conglomerate exercised its right to require the Korean bank to acquire its remaining stake in 2024, a dispute arose over the timing of completion, the Korean bank’s conflicting Indonesian regulatory obligations, and a subsequent pricing disagreement. This led the Indonesian conglomerate to commence the SIAC arbitration, alleging that the Korean bank had failed to complete the acquisition in breach of the share purchase agreement. During the SIAC arbitration process, the Korean bank and the Indonesian conglomerate suspended the arbitration and proceeded with mediation under the SIMC, and were able to resolve the dispute by entering into a successful settlement agreement through mediation.

The case reflects a recent trend among Korean parties utilizing international mediation in conjunction with arbitration to resolve cross-border disputes efficiently. This case is meaningful in that it demonstrates how a share acquisition dispute involving both Indonesian capital market regulations and Singapore law as the governing law of the contract was quickly resolved through international arbitration and mediation, producing a result that fully reflected the Korean bank’s position.