AI Chip Tycoon Chey Tae-won Ordered to Pay $620 Million in Divorce Settlement

South Korean billionaire Chey Tae-won, chairman of the SK Group, which is a major supplier of microchips used by AI leader Nvidia, has been ordered to pay 847 billion won (approximately $620 million) in a divorce settlement. The Seoul Supreme Court on Friday reduced a previous ruling that had ordered Chey to pay 1 trillion won ($700 million) to his estranged wife, Roh Soh-yeong.

The court ruled that Ms. Roh is entitled to a cash payout equivalent to one-third of the couple's marital assets. The marriage between Chey, 65, and Roh, 65, officially ended after a prolonged legal battle that began in 2017, two years after Chey publicly acknowledged fathering a child with another woman in 2015. The couple married in 1988.

The court's decision acknowledged that Chey's marriage into the family of former South Korean President Roh Tae-woo, who led the country from 1988 to 1993, benefited both Chey and his company, SK Group, which is South Korea's second-largest conglomerate after Samsung. The value of SK's shares has reportedly tripled since 2015.

This latest ruling follows a 2024 decision by appeal judges that more than doubled the initial settlement amount. Both Chey and Roh have the option to appeal the current award. Chey Tae-won is the chairman of SK Group, while Roh Soh-yeong is the director of Art Center Nabi.