Samsung has held the weekly meeting every Wednesday and the temporary suspension of the meeting appears to be aimed at focusing on the group's day-to-day management.

Special prosecutors investigating the scandal accused Lee of paying bribes worth about $40 million among other charges.

Lee has played a key role in the group's important business affairs since his father, Lee Kun-hee, was hospitalized in 2014.

Separately, international ratings agency Standard and Poor's said Monday that the arrest of Lee would have a "limited" impact on the ratings of Samsung Electronics "because this event is not likely to affect the company's ordinary operations."

S&P expected Samsung Electronics "to maintain strong operating performance in 2017 primarily owing to solid profitability in its semiconductor business."

"Notwithstanding these factors, if this issue lasts for a prolonged period, leading to material deficiency in leadership, there could be a negative impact on the company's reputation and brand image," S&P said. (Yonhap)