SK Hynix Chairman Chey Tae-won will attend the Nasdaq ADR listing opening bell ceremony on July 10 (local time) in New York. The American Depositary Receipt offering, scaled at approximately 43 trillion won with up to 17.79 million new shares representing 2.5% of total issued shares, attracted oversubscription of more than seven times the offered volume according to Bloomberg citing sources. The listing ceremony serves as a platform for SK Hynix leadership to communicate the company's AI memory competitiveness and mid-to-long-term growth strategy directly to global investors. Industry observers view the Nasdaq entry as a turning point for SK Hynix to be re-evaluated from a commodity memory supplier to a core global AI infrastructure company.
SK Hynix ADR Attracts Seven-Fold Oversubscription
According to investment industry sources on the 9th, Chairman Chey will participate in the listing ceremony alongside SK Hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung and other key executives. Bloomberg reported that demand for SK Hynix's ADR exceeded seven times the offered volume, citing sources. Global long-term investment funds, technology-focused funds, sovereign wealth funds, and Asia-focused global investors participated in the offering, sources stated.
The offering price will be finalized on the 9th. If priced at the closing price of 2.076 million won as of the 8th, the total proceeds would reach $24.5 billion (approximately 37.14 trillion won). This scale would rank as the second-largest US listing by a foreign company, following Alibaba's $25 billion offering.
The ADR will begin temporary trading on Nasdaq on the 10th and transition to regular trading from the 13th.
Funds Allocated for Yongin Fab and EUV Equipment
Proceeds from the offering will be used for construction of the first-phase fab at the Yongin semiconductor cluster, the Cheongju P&T7 advanced packaging fab, and acquisition of machinery including extreme ultraviolet (EUV) scanners, according to the company's stated plans.
Chey Tae-won Positions SK Hynix as AI Infrastructure Company
Chairman Chey's direct participation in the ceremony is interpreted as a move to actively promote SK Hynix's AI memory competitiveness and growth potential to global investors. The ADR listing was pursued to ensure SK Hynix, positioned as a core company in AI infrastructure expansion, receives proper valuation in global capital markets.
In his book "Super Momentum" published earlier this year, which documents SK Hynix's high-bandwidth memory (HBM) success story, Chairman Chey stated: "The market still perceives SK Hynix as a 'commodity' manufacturer and does not recognize higher value," adding "Hynix should grow 10 times larger than now." This reflects his intention to elevate the company's value by transforming it from a simple memory supplier into a customer-tailored AI memory solution provider.
Investment industry sources suggest Chairman Chey may meet with executives from major big tech companies including Nvidia and Tesla during his US visit. In February, Chey met with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in Silicon Valley to discuss mid-to-long-term cooperation covering not only HBM but also next-generation server memory modules (SOCAMM), NAND flash, and AI data center construction. Last month, when Huang visited Korea, the two met again to reaffirm their partnership.
Kim Dong-won, head of KB Securities Research Division, analyzed: "With the ADR listing, global investor accessibility will expand, and both the US ADR and Korean parent stock valuations are expected to be re-evaluated simultaneously."
He explained: "SK Hynix's ADR listing carries significant implications when compared to TSMC's October 1997 US ADR listing case. Based on expanded global investor base, the ADR formed a premium over the parent stock, and during this process, conversion and arbitrage demand utilizing the price difference between parent stock and ADR occurred continuously."
FAQ
What did SK Hynix announce regarding its Nasdaq ADR listing on July 10?
SK Hynix announced that Chairman Chey Tae-won will attend the Nasdaq ADR listing opening bell ceremony on July 10 (local time) in New York. The offering, scaled at approximately 43 trillion won with up to 17.79 million new shares, attracted oversubscription of more than seven times the offered volume according to Bloomberg citing sources.
How will SK Hynix use the funds raised from the ADR offering?
SK Hynix stated the proceeds will be used for construction of the first-phase fab at the Yongin semiconductor cluster, the Cheongju P&T7 advanced packaging fab, and acquisition of machinery including extreme ultraviolet (EUV) scanners.
Why did Chairman Chey Tae-won decide to attend the Nasdaq listing ceremony in person?
Chairman Chey's participation is interpreted as a move to actively promote SK Hynix's AI memory competitiveness and growth potential to global investors, aiming to position the company as a core AI infrastructure firm rather than a commodity memory supplier.
