Following SK Hynix's Record-Breaking Success, Is Samsung Electronics Reviewing ADR Issuance?

It has been reported that Samsung Electronics is internally reviewing a scenario for issuing American Depositary Receipts (ADR) and has even examined the necessary working-level procedures.

Although the company officially denied the rumors, it is reported that, under the direction of management, working-level staff have been tasked with verifying the potential profit and loss, as well as the required procedures for such an issuance.

IT news outlet Bloter and others reported that Samsung Electronics management recently instructed relevant departments to examine whether a structure for issuing U.S. ADRs is feasible.

It is understood that working-level staff in finance and Investor Relations (IR) are identifying the necessary tasks and procedures for each of their respective areas should the company proceed with an actual listing.

While the company has not reached a stage of deciding on a listing policy or finalizing the timing and scale of an issuance, this appears to be a preliminary preparation process to check feasibility and requirements across departments.

In this process, it is reported that Samsung Electronics staff also requested relevant information from SK Hynix, which recently issued ADRs and listed on the Nasdaq.

Previously, Bloomberg reported that Samsung Electronics had held initial discussions with investment banks regarding the possibility of a U.S. stock market listing through ADRs.

The report noted that the discussions were in the early stages, with no specific plans such as lead underwriters or issuance structures decided, and that there is a possibility it may not lead to an actual listing.

However, immediately following that report, Samsung Electronics stated, "We are not considering a U.S. stock market listing through ADR issuance."

SK Hynix also maintained the position that nothing had been specifically decided when rumors of its U.S. listing first emerged.

Subsequently, the company went through internal decision-making processes and filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to gradually formalize its ADR issuance and Nasdaq listing.

On July 10, SK Hynix issued ADRs at 149 dollars per share, raising approximately 26.5 billion dollars (about 40 trillion won). This marks the second-largest U.S. stock market listing in history, following SpaceX, which raised 85.7 billion dollars through its initial public offering last month, and the largest ever for a foreign company.

The industry interprets this as Samsung Electronics beginning to examine the necessary internal procedures following the success of SK Hynix's U.S. listing.

Reported by Kim Minjeong | Video by Kim Hye-ju | Graphics by Lee Soo-min | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.