The divorce of the century shaking South Korea: AI billionaire to pay hundreds of millions
A Seoul court has ordered the chairman of SK Group to pay his ex-wife approximately one-third of his fortune. The $644 million settlement was calculated based on asset values at the time of the appeal hearing, rejecting the ex-wife's request to base the figure on future company valuations.
A Seoul court ordered billionaire Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group and the memory chip giant SK Hynix, to pay his ex-wife Roh Soh-yeong 944 billion won ($644 million). This amount is significantly lower than what Roh, daughter of former South Korean President Roh Tae-woo, had requested during their protracted divorce proceedings.
Roh had argued that her father contributed to the company's growth through early investments and sought a payout based on the value of SK Group in 2026. She estimated this would have resulted in a multi-billion dollar settlement, given the surge in SK Hynix stock driven by AI demand. The court rejected this, ruling that shares should be valued as of the end of the 2024 appeal hearing, before artificial intelligence caused prices to quintuple.
The verdict is based on an asset division where Roh receives one-third and Chey retains two-thirds. This decision is lower than a previous 2024 ruling, which was overturned by the Supreme Court in October. The Supreme Court had determined that the financial contribution of Roh's father should be excluded, as the funds allegedly transferred to Chey's father were obtained illegally.
Chey and Roh married in 1988 at the Blue House, the presidential residence, in what was dubbed the "wedding of the century." The separation became public in 2015 when Chey published a newspaper letter revealing he had fallen in love with another woman and had a child with her. Roh initially sought to keep the family together but later demanded half of Chey's fortune. A court also ordered Chey and his current partner, Kim Hee-young, to jointly pay Roh approximately $1.5 million in damages for the breakdown of the marriage.
Since the divorce announcement in 2015, SK Hynix shares have soared from 33,000 won to levels that have made it one of the world's most valuable companies. In May, SK Hynix reached a $1 trillion valuation, and earlier this month, it raised $26.5 billion in the largest-ever US offering by a foreign company. The AI boom has transformed the business, previously considered slow and stable, into one of the most sought-after investments in the tech world.
