SK Hynix said it will raise about $29.4 billion (45.45 trillion won) by listing American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the Nasdaq stock exchange around July 10, 2026, though the date remains tentative [1, 2]. The company plans to issue 17.79 million new ADR shares, with 10 ADRs representing one common share [1, 3].
Funds from the offering will finance expansion of chip production, including a new semiconductor cluster in Yongin expected to begin operations in 2027, an advanced packaging fab in Cheongju, and the purchase of extreme ultraviolet lithography equipment [1, 4, 2]. SK Hynix will also build a $4 billion packaging plant in Indiana, its first US production facility [2, 3].
The size of the offering places it among the largest ADR and share sales globally, comparable to Saudi Aramco's $29.4 billion IPO in 2019 [1, 5]. Following the announcement on June 25, SK Hynix shares surged 10-12%, pushing South Korea's Kospi index up about 6% [6, 4].
SK Hynix is South Korea’s most valuable company as of June 2026, briefly overtaking Samsung Electronics with a market capitalization near $1 trillion [1, 7]. It holds 57-60% of the global high-bandwidth memory (HBM) market, a key segment supporting AI infrastructure buildout [8, 2]. MS Hwang, director at Counterpoint Research, said, "SK is definitely the top notch player in HBM... it has the best product, lowest cost [2]."
The company’s strong performance is reflected in a record Q1 2026 operating profit of 37.61 trillion won, exceeding analyst expectations [8]. Industry peers like Micron Technology’s CEO Sanjay Mehrotra noted that AI is transforming the memory industry and driving significant growth opportunities [9].
SK Hynix’s CEO stated the company aims to elevate its global status by increasing its presence in the US, "the epicenter of AI technological innovation" [2]. Chey Tae-won, chair of SK Hynix’s parent company, said the company will double silicon wafer production capacity within five years, citing potential memory shortages lasting until 2030 [10].
The book-building process for the ADR offering is set to begin on July 6, with pricing expected by July 9 [4]. ADR trading on Nasdaq will likely commence around July 10, 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions [1, 11].
