Chip giant SK Hynix launches $36 billion US listing to ride global AI wave

SEOUL – South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix on July 6 launched a US share sale to raise 43 trillion won (S$36 billion) and drew indications of interest for up to US$7 billion (S$9 billion) from major investors, as it capitalises on the global artificial intelligence boom in one of the world’s largest new share sales.

Baillie Gifford Overseas, investment funds managed by Coatue Management and Situational Awareness Partners have each separately indicated interest in buying up to a combined US$7 billion worth of SK Hynix’s American depositary receipts, or ADRs, SK Hynix said.

Baillie Gifford Overseas declined to comment, while Coatue Management and Situational Awareness Partners did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The company will sell 17.79 million new shares through the ADRs on the Nasdaq, with 10 ADRs representing one common share.

A filing on July 6 gave a reference price of 242,500 won per ADR, based on SK Hynix’s July 3 closing price in Seoul.

The deal comes as Asian chip companies tap strong global demand for AI-related stocks.

Taiwan’s Unimicron Technology is also seeking to raise about US$1.4 billion through a sale of global depositary shares, or shares listed overseas that represent its local stock.

SK Hynix’s shares ended on July 6 down 3.4 per cent at 2,343,000 won, but the stock is still up about 260 per cent in 2026. South Korea’s Kospi was down 0.5 per cent on July 6.

Memory chip stocks have been volatile in recent sessions due in part to renewed investor concerns about how long the boom would last.

“We are in the midst of a memory super cycle, with all three major suppliers – Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron – riding the AI-driven demand wave,” said Di Zhou, portfolio manager at Santa Fe, New Mexico-based Thornburg Investment Management with US$60 billion in assets. It owns SK Hynix’s Korean ordinary shares.

She added that SK Hynix’s ADR listing was positive because it would broaden the company’s investor base and potentially narrow its valuation gap with US rival Micron.

“While market volatility has been quite high recently, I would expect demand for SK Hynix shares to remain relatively robust,” said Albert Yong, a managing partner at Petra Capital Management.

South Korea last week unveiled a sweeping industrial strategy centred on semiconductors and AI, with a US$576 billion chip investment programme in the country’s south-west to help the nation remain competitive in the global AI race.

SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics will anchor the investment programme, the government said.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on July 6 ordered officials to move quickly to get to work on major chip and AI projects announced last week.

He warned that delays in permits, land acquisition, and securing power and water supply could undermine the country’s bid to dominate advanced industries.

Memory inflation

SK Hynix has been among the world’s largest beneficiaries of the AI boom as it outperformed its major rivals Samsung and Micron.

“This is more than a liquidity event,” said Dave Mazza, the chief executive officer of Roundhill Investments in New York, which manages an exchange-traded fund tracking DRAM manufacturers, which is one of the most popular ways for US investors to trade SK Hynix’s stock.

“SK Hynix has been one of the most important companies in the world that most US institutions could not easily own,” he added. “The listing removes an accessibility discount, not a quality discount.”

Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Connecticut-based Interactive Brokers, said individuals and smaller institutions would benefit from the US listing, rather than large investors.

“The new listing will make it easier for capital-hungry Hynix to directly access a new group of momentum-hungry investors,” Sosnick said.

SK Hynix said the proceeds from ​the listing of the ADRs will ​be used to build chip factories in South Korea and buy chipmaking equipment, including an extreme ultraviolet scanner made by Dutch equipment maker ASML.

The final price of the New York listing is due to be set on July 9, ahead of the stock starting trade on July 10, regulatory filings showed.

The company’s management will meet global investors on a roadshow this week.

The deal is expected to be the second-biggest share sale after a record US$85.7 billion initial public offering (IPO) by SpaceX in June, surpassing Saudi Aramco’s US$25.6 billion IPO in 2019 and Alibaba’s similar-sized offering in 2014.

Some investors were cautious that memory “inflation” would dent spending on AI infrastructure, mobile phones and PCs.

“We expect better access, but timing of the memory cycle is equally important,” said Sundeep Gantori, Standard Chartered’s chief investment officer of equities.

“We believe memory cycle is beyond the early phase and now in the mid-cycle stage.”

SK Hynix is a key supplier ​of high-bandwidth memory chips used in AI systems by customers such as Nvidia and Google.

In June, HSBC said it would raise its valuation of SK Hynix by applying a 20 per cent premium to its previous price-to-book multiple of 2.8 times, implying a multiple of 3.4 times, “reflecting more proactive shareholder-friendly initiatives and improved accessibility to global investors”.

Global coordinators for SK Hynix’s offering include BofA Securities, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. REUTERS