Tech titan ordered to pay ex-wife $644m in divorce settlement

What the report says

BBC World News reported that a South Korean court has ordered Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, to pay his former wife Roh Soh-yeong 944 billion won, about $644 million or £483 million, in a high-profile divorce settlement. The amount, which the BBC said still has to be finalised, is lower than the 1.38 trillion won award Chey was previously ordered to pay in 2024.

The case has drawn intense attention in South Korea because it involves the head of one of the country’s largest family-controlled conglomerates and Roh, the daughter of former president Roh Tae-woo. According to the BBC, the couple had been married for 35 years, and the marriage broke down more than a decade ago after Chey disclosed that he had fathered a child with another woman.

A central issue has been how to divide assets. In the earlier proceedings, Roh’s lawyers argued that Chey benefited from support linked to her father, who led South Korea from 1988 to 1993. A court had found that Roh Tae-woo gave Chey 30 billion won from a slush fund in 1991, but the Supreme Court later overturned the award, saying illegally obtained funds could not be counted among marital assets.

SK Group is a major South Korean chaebol with interests spanning telecoms, energy and semiconductors, including SK Hynix, a key player in the AI chip supply chain. Chey’s lawyers said they would review the ruling before giving a detailed response, while the BBC said it had contacted SK Group for comment.