The Seoul High Court ruled on Friday that SK Group chairman Chey Tae-won must pay 944 billion won (approximately US$645 million) to his former wife Roh Soh-yeong, finalising a property division in what South Korean media have termed the “divorce of the century.” The sum, equivalent to one-third of the couple’s joint assets, is lower than the 1.38 trillion won awarded by the same court in 2024, a decision that was overturned by the Supreme Court after it rejected arguments that Roh’s father, former president Roh Tae-woo, had provided illicit funds that helped build the conglomerate. The ruling is subject to appeal, and neither Chey nor Roh appeared in court.

Chey’s lawyer, Lee Jae-keun, stated that the billionaire was “apologetic for causing concern” and would decide on an appeal after reviewing the full judgment. The court recognised Roh’s contributions through homemaking, child-rearing, and public activities related to SK Group, and held that shares in SK Inc., the holding company, were acquired during the marriage and therefore subject to division. Chey had argued that his stake was inherited — SK Group was founded by his uncle — but the court noted that the value of those holdings had surged during the marriage, driven in part by the global artificial intelligence boom that has propelled SK Hynix, the group’s semiconductor arm, to a market capitalisation above US$1 trillion.

Financial analysts in Seoul warn that the award could pressure Chey’s 17.9 percent stake in SK Inc., which is now the focus of investor anxiety. Shares of SK Inc. fell 3.82 percent and SK Hynix dropped 8.34 percent on the day of the ruling. Observers say financing the settlement may force Chey to borrow against his holdings, sell assets, or pledge shares, a move that could rattle the wider conglomerate. Chey’s personal net worth has more than doubled in the past year to roughly US$5.6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, largely owing to the AI-driven rally in SK Hynix, a key supplier of high-bandwidth memory chips to Nvidia.

The legal battle, which began in 2022, draws back the curtain on the intertwined worlds of politics and business in South Korea. Chey and Roh married at the presidential Blue House in 1988, when Roh’s father was head of state, and have three children. The marriage unravelled publicly in 2015 after Chey admitted to an extramarital child; he filed for divorce in 2017. The case has since become a symbol of the dynastic chaebol system, as the explosive growth of SK Hynix — which recently raised US$26.5 billion in a record US listing — has turned a private family dispute into a matter of shareholder concern. Chey is currently travelling with President Lee Jae Myung in the United States, where the president is promoting AI and semiconductor investment. The ruling can still be appealed to the Supreme Court, prolonging a dispute that has gripped the nation.