Chey Taps Michael Dell’s Family Fund in 944 Billion Won Divorce Funding Plan

SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won delivers a keynote speech at the Ecosystem Leadership Exchange (ELE) session of the Social Enterprise World Forum (SEWF) in Seoul on Oct. 12. (Photo courtesy of the Center for Social value Enhancement Studies) SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won has brought in Michael Dell, the founder of Dell Technologies, as an investor to raise the funds needed to pay the court-ordered property division settlement to his ex-wife, Roh Soh-yeong, director of Art Center Nabi. The stake sale is being interpreted as more than a financing move, potentially reinforcing cooperation between SK and Dell Technologies in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. According to an electronic disclosure filed with the Financial Supervisory Service on Oct. 14, Chey has decided to sell 972,493 common shares of SK Inc., representing a 1.34% stake, to DFO Public Investments. The fund is managed by DFO Management, the family office that oversees the personal assets of Michael Dell, the founder of Dell Technologies. The sale price was set at 559,387 won, or approximately $415.50, per share, an 11.6% premium over the Oct. 13 closing price, allowing Chey to raise 544 billion won in cash. Market observers are focusing on how the transaction aligns with the two companies’ shared interests in the AI business. SK hynix currently supplies high-bandwidth memory (HBM) to Nvidia, which uses it to produce AI computing modules. Dell then assembles finished servers and supplies them to major technology companies, forming an interconnected supply chain. At a forum held in Seoul last August, it was also disclosed that Dell’s latest servers would be equipped with SK hynix’s DDR5 DRAM and enterprise-grade SSDs. To secure the remaining 400 billion won, Chey has also entered into a Price Return Swap (PRS) agreement with Korea Investment & Securities. Under the arrangement, he will transfer a 0.94% stake to the brokerage, with the difference arising from subsequent share price movements to be settled after three years. Korea Investment & Securities is regarded as a key ally that has participated in major SK Group transactions, supported by the longstanding relationship between its chairman, Kim Nam-goo, and Chey. Through the two transactions, Chey stands to secure a total of 944 billion won, exactly matching the property division amount ordered by the Seoul High Court in July following the case’s remand. Although Chey has appealed part of the ruling to the Supreme Court, the transactions are being interpreted as a preemptive move to secure liquidity equivalent to the full amount awarded, preparing for the potential payment obligation depending on the court’s final decision. However, some observers caution against interpreting the transaction as an immediate strategic alliance between the two companies, given that the stake is being acquired by Michael Dell’s personal family fund rather than Dell Technologies itself. An SK official maintained that the company had no specific information regarding the chairman’s personal stake transaction. The deal is scheduled to be finalized on Nov. 2 through an after-hours block trade.