A court delivered its final ruling Monday that the acquisition tax imposed on a Singaporean firm for its purchase of a Seoul office building was justifiable.
Singapore’s GIC Real Estate purchased the 45-story Star Tower building in Gangnam, southern Seoul, from U.S. private equity firm Lone Star in December 2004 through two paper companies it set up just days ahead of the deal.
Gangnam District Office levied 16.9 billion won ($15.5 million) in acquisition tax on GIC Real Estate, claiming it used the two paper firms to evade taxes. The Singaporean firm refused to pay and took the case to court.
After an eight-year legal battle, the Seoul High Court made the final ruling that the acquisition tax on the Singaporean firm was justifiable. Full story
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