Tycoon to pay ex-wife $1.87bn in record South Korea divorce settlement

A South Korean court has issued a record divorce settlement, ordering gaming tycoon Kwon Hyuk-bin to pay his ex-wife 2.55 trillion won ($1.87 billion) in assets. This makes it the largest divorce settlement in the country's history. Kwon, the founder of Smilegate, one of South Korea's top three video game companies, is one of the nation's wealthiest individuals.

His estimated net worth stands at $3 billion. Smilegate was entirely owned by Kwon until a recent court ruling, which ordered that his 35% stake in the company, valued at around 2.5 trillion won, be transferred to his wife, Lee Hwa-jin. Additionally, Kwon was directed to pay Lee an extra 65 billion won in cash. This settlement is more than double the previous record of 944 billion won, which was previously held by tech mogul Chey Tae-won.

In his divorce petition, Lee had requested a 50% share in Smilegate. Her legal team argued that she had contributed to the company's founding through financial support. Kwon and Lee married in 2001, a year before he established Smilegate. The company is best known for its first-person shooter game CrossFire and action role-playing game Lost Ark.

Lee also claimed to have spent over 20 years raising their children and managing their household. Kwon countered that Lee did not invest or work for the company. Earlier this year, SK Group chairman Chey Tae-won was mandated to pay his ex-wife 944 billion won, previously the largest divorce award in Korean history, but this ruling was later overturned by the Supreme Court due to an estimated miscalculation.