Topline
SK Hynix, the world’s third-largest memory chipmaker, announced on Tuesday it planned to raise $29 billion on the Nasdaq, marking the South Korean giant’s U.S. trading debut in what could be one of the largest public offerings ever as its business has soared on booming AI demand.
The South Korean chipmaker’s business has soared on booming AI demand.
AFP via Getty Images
Key Facts
SK Hynix, in a disclosure to the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday, said it planned to list on the Nasdaq as soon as July 10 under the ticker “SKHY” by issuing American depository receipts (ADRs), or certificates representing ownership of shares in a foreign company.
The chipmaker said it planned to issue 17.79 million new shares valued at 45.45 trillion won ($29.65 billion), and that 10 ADRs would represent one common share.
In the disclosure, SK Hynix said the listing would “elevate our status as a global company by broadening our touchpoints in the [U.S.], the epicenter of AI technological innovation.”
Bank of America, Citigroup Global Markets, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Securities are managing the offering.
surprising fact
While not an initial public offering, SK Hynix’s planned $29 billion offering would be the second-largest this year behind SpaceX’s record-setting $85.7 billion. If SK Hynix raises the full amount, it would rank among the largest equity offerings ever, not just in 2026: Saudi Aramco raised $29.4 billion in its IPO in 2019, which ranked the largest ever until SpaceX’s debut earlier this month.
big number
$1.1 trillion. That’s SK Hynix’s market value as of Tuesday, ranking the second-largest company in South Korea behind Samsung ($1.4 trillion) and just behind Micron ($1.18 trillion) as the world’s third-largest provider of memory chips. Samsung and SK Hynix account for more than 40% of South Korea’s Kospi benchmark index.
key background
SK Hynix, along with Samsung and Micron, has accelerated amid a global AI buildout. Shares of the South Korean giant have skyrocketed 281% so far this year and more than 800% over the last 12 months, and as of Q4 2025, SK Hynix controlled roughly 57% of the global high-bandwidth memory market, according to Bloomberg. Other international semiconductor firms similarly trade in the U.S. using ADRs: TSMC, the world’s sixth-largest company by market capitalization, began issuing ADRs in 1997.