Samsung Family Completes Record 12 Trillion Won Inheritance Tax Payment

The family behind South Korean giant Samsung has completed payment of a 12 trillion won (£6 billion; $8 billion) inheritance tax bill, the largest such settlement in the country's history.

Chairman Lee Jae-yong and other family members, including his mother Hong Ra-hee and sisters Lee Boo-jin and Lee Seo-hyun, paid the sum in six installments over the last five years. The bill stems from the estate of the firm's late chairman Lee Kun-hee, who died in October 2020.

At the time, the family stated that "paying taxes is a natural duty of citizens."

Samsung confirmed Sunday that the final payment had been made. The sum equals roughly one and a half times South Korea's total inheritance tax revenue for 2024.

South Korea's inheritance tax rate stands at 50%, among the highest in the world.

Investors watched the handling of the tax bill closely, as it could have affected the Lee family's ability to retain control of Samsung.

Part of Lee Kun-hee's estate, including his collection of art by Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali, went to the National Museum of Korea and other cultural organizations.

The Lee family has a combined net worth of more than $45 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Their wealth has more than doubled in the last year as demand for computer chips from the global artificial intelligence industry has driven up the stock market value of Samsung Electronics.