SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won plans to sell 944 billion won ($701 million) worth of shares in the holding company SK Inc., an amount matching the property division ordered by a court in his divorce case with former wife Roh Soh-yeong.
SK Inc. said in a regulatory filing Friday that Chey, its largest shareholder, will sell 1,653,924 shares, representing a 2.3 percent stake in the company.
Of the total, 544 billion won worth of shares will be sold to a strategic investor, while another 400 billion won worth will be used in price return swap transactions with securities firms.
The transactions are to begin Nov. 2.
SK said the stake sale is intended to raise funds for Chey’s personal financial needs.
The company added that the strategic investor decided to take a stake in SK Inc. after considering the company’s business competitiveness and long-term growth prospects.
The 944 billion won Chey stands to raise from the transactions is the same amount the Seoul High Court ordered him in July to pay Roh, Art Center Nabi's director, as part of their property division.
Chey appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court in August. He later narrowed the scope of the appeal, accepting 700 billion won of the award while continuing to challenge the remaining 244 billion won.
Upon completion of the planned transactions, Chey’s holdings in SK Inc. will fall to 11,321,548 common shares from 12,975,472.
His stake in the company will decline to 15.5 percent from 17.8 percent, while the combined stake held by Chey and related parties will fall to 22.9 percent from 25.2 percent.
SK said the chairman will continue to focus on responsible management and efforts to enhance the company’s corporate value despite the reduction in his stake.
The company said it will also proceed with its existing growth strategy, investment plans and shareholder value initiatives.
yeeun@heraldcorp.com
