Smilegate Founder Kwon Hyuk-bin Faces Record 2.5 Trillion Won Property Division in Divorce

[Anchor]

In the first-trial ruling of the divorce lawsuit involving Kwon Hyuk-bin, the founder of the South Korean game company Smilegate, a court has ordered him to distribute approximately 2.5 trillion won in assets to his spouse. This marks the largest property division in history, exceeding twice the amount awarded in the divorce case of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won.

Reporter Jang Hun-gyeong has the details.

[Reporter]

The Seoul Family Court has accepted the divorce petition filed by Lee, the spouse of Smilegate founder Kwon Hyuk-bin.

This first-trial ruling comes about four years after Lee filed the lawsuit in November 2022.

The court ruled, "Kwon must pay Lee a total of 2.55 trillion won as a property division, consisting of 35 percent of Smilegate shares and 65 billion won in cash."

The court estimated the value of Kwon's 100 percent stake in Smilegate at 7.1 trillion won.

In terms of the scale of property division, this is more than double the 944 billion won awarded in the remand trial of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won last July, marking the largest amount ever recorded.

While stating that it "highly evaluated Kwon's business acumen and contributions," the court added, "Considering the economic support provided by Lee's family during the early stages of marriage and the overall course of married life," it determined the share distribution ratio to be 65 percent for Kwon and 35 percent for Lee.

However, the court dismissed the claim for alimony, ruling that both parties bore equal responsibility for the breakdown of the marriage. It designated Lee as the custodian of their minor children and ordered Kwon to pay 20 million won per month in child support.

Kwon, who married Lee in 2001, founded Smilegate the following year.

The couple entered a separation in 2020, and two years later, Lee filed for divorce, claiming that Kwon had neglected his family.

Immediately following the ruling, The Attorney representing Kwon stated, "We will review the judgment and consult with our client regarding future procedures," while Lee's side stated, "We respect the court's decision."

(Camera footage by: In Pil-sung | Video editing by: Kim Yun-seong | Image courtesy of: Smilegate)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.