SK hynix, a South Korean reminiscence chip big already listed on the KOSPI, is laying the groundwork for a possible U.S. itemizing that might reportedly elevate an estimated $10 billion to $14 billion.
The corporate introduced this week that it has confidentially filed a Kind F-1 with the itemizing, focusing on the second half of 2026.
However the actual query isn’t simply how a lot it could elevate: it’s whether or not a U.S. itemizing might enhance its buying and selling worth as one of the crucial essential gamers within the AI chip provide chain.
Regardless of its essential position in high-bandwidth reminiscence (HBM), a key element powering AI methods from firms like Nvidia, the inventory has traditionally traded at a reduction to international friends, in accordance with a Seoul-based semiconductor analyst. It’s obtained a market cap of round $440 billion, however its valuation multiples stay beneath these of U.S.-listed semiconductor corporations, elevating questions on whether or not geography, reasonably than fundamentals, is partly driving the hole.
The transfer is extensively seen as an effort to extend its valuation to match international friends like Micron.
“SK hynix’s U.S. itemizing might assist shut a long-standing valuation hole with international friends. Regardless of having comparable – or in some areas stronger – manufacturing capability than U.S.-based chipmakers, the Korean firm has traditionally traded at a reduction, partly as a consequence of its major itemizing in Korea,” the analyst advised TechCrunch.
The analyst additionally talked about structural elements shaping the deal. “SK Sq., SK hynix’s largest shareholder, which held 20.07% as of December 2025, is required to keep up a stake of no less than 20% below Korea’s holding firm guidelines.”
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Primarily based on present share costs, issuing roughly 2% in new shares might elevate $10 billion to $14 billion whereas permitting SK Sq. to keep up its possession threshold, the analyst mentioned. (Below Korea’s Honest Commerce Act, holding firms should keep minimal possession stakes in subsidiaries, no less than 20% for listed entities, to retain management.)
There’s precedent. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Firm (TSMC), for instance, has seen its U.S.-listed shares commerce at a premium to its home shares at instances, significantly in periods of sturdy AI-driven demand, suggesting that cross-listing can affect how traders value the identical underlying enterprise.
The transfer is already rippling throughout the broader Korean chip sector. Following SK hynix’s submitting, some traders at the moment are pushing Samsung Electronics to contemplate an analogous U.S. itemizing. Artisan Companions, a significant shareholder, mentioned Friday {that a} U.S. itemizing (technically often called an American depositary receipt, or ADR), might assist Samsung increase its valuation, too, in addition to give U.S. retail traders an opportunity to purchase its inventory, in accordance with a Bloomberg report.
A capital push to fulfill AI-driven demand
SK hynix’s deliberate ADR itemizing can also be extensively seen as a transfer to safe funding forward of elevated capital spending to fulfill the rising demand for reminiscence from AI semiconductors.
At its annual common assembly on March 25, SK hynix CEO Noh-Jung Kwak mentioned monetary capability shall be key to sustaining progress within the AI period, including that the corporate is focusing on roughly $75 billion (greater than 100 trillion KRW) in internet money to assist long-term investments.
Hovering price for reminiscence, and restricted provide, has been one of many bottlenecks slowing AI builds, but additionally impacting different industries, like shopper players. It’s a state of affairs that’s been dubbed “RAMmageddon” and, if nothing available in the market adjustments, is predicted to proceed till no less than 2027, Nature reviews.
Time will inform if that doomsday prediction holds up. The tech giants are engaged on fixing RAMmageddon in different methods past elevated manufacturing. For example, Google this week launched a tech referred to as TurboQuant, an ultra-efficient AI reminiscence compression algorithm. It permits AI to grow to be vastly extra environment friendly in utilizing reminiscence.
However, the alerts point out that extra reminiscence manufacturing shall be mandatory as properly. SK hynix is gearing up for a wave of capital-intensive tasks. The corporate plans to take a position round $400 billion by 2050 to construct a semiconductor cluster in Yongin, South Korea. It’s also setting up new services in South Korea and Indiana, with deliberate investments of about $25 billion and $3.3 billion, respectively, underscoring the dimensions of capital required.
The chipmaker mentioned this week it’s going to purchase superior excessive ultraviolet (EUV) lithography scanners from ASML by 2027 in a deal value $7.9 billion, aimed toward boosting high-bandwidth reminiscence (HBM) manufacturing for AI.
All of this could be supported by a blockbuster U.S. IPO. And that might lead different Korean chip makers to observe.
