* Court orders $640 mln paid to ex-wife in asset settlement

* Award calculation to reflect holding company stake, court

says

* SK Inc shares fall over 4%, chipmaker SK Hynix ( SKHY ) drops over

8%

* Ruling may cause some share sales, analysts say

* But not expected to affect group management control, they

say

(Adds stock performance, analyst comment, ruling details;

paragraphs 2-11, 13-17, 19-21)

By Joyce Lee

SEOUL, July 24 (Reuters) - A South Korean court ordered SK

Group Chairman Chey Tae-won on Friday to pay 944 billion won

($640 million) in a divorce case that has cast a spotlight on

the billionaire's stake in the nation's second-largest

conglomerate, its fortunes lifted by AI.

The cash award to Chey's former spouse, Roh Soh-yeong, is a

record for South Korea, even though substantially lower than a

settlement of 1.38 trillion won ordered by the appeals court in

2024.

Fund managers and analysts said it meant Chey may still need

to sell shares in units of SK Group or use them as collateral to

raise funds for payment, but probably would not affect

management control of the conglomerate.

"This likely won't affect management control of SK Group,"

said Park Ju-gun, head of corporate analysis firm Leaders Index.

SK Group's international profile has soared on the back of

the artificial intelligence boom.

Its chip affiliate, SK Hynix ( SKHY ), has become a key

supplier of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips used with Nvidia's ( NVDA )

AI processors, making the company one of the biggest

beneficiaries of surging demand for advanced semiconductors.

"We apologise for causing concern and will decide whether to

appeal after reviewing the court ruling," said Lee Jae-keun, a

lawyer representing Chey.

SK Group did not immediately respond to a request for

comment on the ruling.

Roh's lawyers did not comment to reporters.

Shares of SK Inc. closed down 3.8%, while SK

Hynix ( SKHY ) dropped 8.3% in Seoul trading.

Friday's ruling came after the Supreme Court overturned part

of a lower court's verdict in the divorce settlement case last

year.

The Supreme Court said alleged funds provided to the group

by Roh's father, former President Roh Tae-woo, could not be

treated as a legally protected contribution.

The divorce itself, and damages of 2 billion won ($1.36

million), had already been finalised.

Chey is not a direct shareholder of SK Hynix ( SKHY ). But he is the

largest shareholder of SK Inc, which holds a stake of 32% in the

chipmaker's top shareholder, SK Square. His wealth

is estimated at $5.4 billion, according to Forbes.

INCREASED INVESTOR FOCUS ON HOLDING COMPANY STAKE

The case has increased investor focus on Chey's 17.9% stake

in SK Inc, the group's holding company, and whether a large cash

award could force him to raise funds through borrowing, asset

sales or share pledges.

The court said Chey's SK Inc shares and other holdings

remained subject to division, as they were acquired during the

marriage and both parties contributed to their creation,

maintenance and increase in value.

Roh's contributions included child-rearing, household

responsibilities and external activities related to SK Group, it

added.

The court also said it did not take into account alleged

financial support from Roh's father in calculating the division

ratio, in line with the Supreme Court ruling.

On Friday, the Seoul High Court said Chey's shareholdings

should be valued as of April 16, 2024, when the original appeals

court concluded fact-finding in the divorce case, citing Supreme

Court precedent.

While Chey's shareholdings rose sharply after the original

appeal hearing, it said the increase did not warrant adopting a

later valuation date and was instead reflected in determining

the parties' respective shares of the marital estate.

On Friday, the court set the property division ratio at a

third for Roh and two-thirds for Chey, down from the share of

35% the appeals court awarded Roh in 2024.

It also said Chey would retain ownership of the shares and

satisfy the award through a cash payment rather than a transfer

of stock, citing the shares' role in maintaining management

control of the SK Group.

The case could return to the Supreme Court if either side

challenges the Seoul High Court's ruling.

($1=1,466.1000 won)