▲ SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, who also serves as the chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, speaks at a policy seminar titled "South Korea's Growth Strategy Amid U.S.-China AI Technology Hegemony Competition," held by the Korea-China Parliamentarians' Union at the National Assembly Members' Office Building on the 28th.
SK Hynix is set to tighten its grip on the global semiconductor market after securing 40 trillion won in investment capital through the listing of American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the Nasdaq market.
With memory demand continuing to rise due to the acceleration of global artificial intelligence (AI) investments, the company plans to use the funds raised from the listing to expand production capacity and strengthen product competitiveness, thereby solidifying its market dominance.
SK Hynix announced that it will officially list its ADRs on the Nasdaq market today (July 10) and begin trading.
To this end, SK Hynix decided to issue up to 17.79 million new shares (177.9 million shares in ADR terms), which accounts for approximately 2.5% of its total outstanding shares.
The price for the ADR initial public offering (IPO) was set at 149 dollars per share.
SK Hynix explained that based on the exchange rate of 1,509.9 won as of the ADR pricing date (July 9), this translates to 2,249,751 won.
Consequently, SK Hynix will be able to raise a total of 26.571 billion dollars (40.02307029 trillion won) through this offering.
This figure surpasses the 25 billion dollars raised by Alibaba during its U.S. stock market listing in 2014, marking the largest IPO by a foreign company in U.S. history.
In terms of U.S. IPOs, it ranks second, following SpaceX, which went public last month (85.7 billion dollars).
The 40 trillion won in proceeds from the offering is scheduled to be deposited into SK Hynix on the 14th, when the public offering process concludes.
With this as a catalyst, SK Hynix plans to further accelerate the expansion of its semiconductor production capacity (CAPA).
The company disclosed that the funds raised will be used for construction and facility investments, including the first fab of the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster, the Cheongju P&T7 advanced packaging fab, and machinery.
It will also invest 11.9 trillion won in the introduction of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography equipment, which is scheduled to be brought in by the end of next year.
Despite concerns raised in some quarters about a "peak out"—a scenario where growth slows after reaching a peak—the consensus remains that the global memory semiconductor market will continue to grow.
Market research firm Counterpoint Research recently projected that the average operating profit margin of the three global memory giants—Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Micron—will reach 75–80% in the second quarter of this year, anticipating that the boom caused by supply shortages will continue at least until next year.
Overseas, Micron's recent 14 trillion won investment in Hiroshima, Japan, to build a next-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM) production line is also interpreted as an attempt to maximize the effects of this supercycle.
In South Korea, global competition for semiconductor production increases is also intensifying, with the Honam region semiconductor cluster being established on the site of the Gwangju military airport as a core project of the government's three major mega-projects.
The Nasdaq listing is expected to not only bring in massive cash inflows but also serve as a catalyst for long-term fundraising by facilitating a revaluation of the company's value.
Although SK Hynix is the undisputed global leader in the HBM market and maintains a significant gap over third-place Micron in both global DRAM market share and operating profit, its price-to-earnings ratio (PER) is evaluated 20–40% lower than that of Micron.
SK Hynix expects this listing to serve as an opportunity to resolve this undervalued state by enhancing global investment accessibility.
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said earlier this year regarding the push for an ADR listing, "It will allow us to be exposed not only to Korean shareholders but also to U.S. and global shareholders, which will help us become a more global company."
Expectations are also mounting that global asset managers, pension funds, and passive funds will flow in following the Nasdaq listing.
The goal of achieving 100 trillion won in net cash to ensure financial stability is also being evaluated as closer to realization through this listing.
As the new shares issued this time account for only 2.5% of the total shares, SK Hynix believes that the benefits, such as improved global investment accessibility and additional capital inflow, will outweigh the dilution of shareholder value.
Furthermore, the company plans to actively communicate with the market and prepare concrete shareholder return plans within the year.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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