SK Hynix files to raise up to $29.65 billion through historic Nasdaq ADR listing, with all proceeds directed to advanced AI memory fabs and EUV tool procurement.
SK hynix filed a securities registration statement with South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service and the U.S. SEC on Wednesday to raise up to 45.45 trillion won ($29.43 billion) through an American depositary receipt listing on the Nasdaq Global Select Market scheduled for July 10th. The company stated that the entire proceeds would go toward investments in factories and equipment. The offering covers 17.79 million newly issued common shares and would rank among the largest ADR sales ever completed.
SK hynix has earmarked the proceeds for its first fab in the Yongin cluster, an advanced packaging plant in Cheongju, and chipmaking equipment that includes EUV scanners. None of the funded projects will produce memory in time to ease the shortage that's still driving up prices. SK hynix holds approximately 57% of the HBM market and 32% of global DRAM, and chairman Chey Tae-won has stated repeatedly that AI demand will keep supply tight until 2030.
The filing names three target projects that SK hynix has already committed to and is now financing via public markets. The first fab in the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster, designated Y1, carries a 31 trillion won ($21.5 billion) commitment for its initial phase and is due for completion around February 2027, with equipment installation to follow in the second quarter. The Cheongju P&T7 advanced packaging plant, a 19 trillion won ($12.9 billion) site dedicated to HBM assembly and testing, broke ground in April and should be completed at the end of 2027. EUV lithography is needed in both facilities, and SK hynix placed a record $7.9 billion order with ASML in March covering roughly 30 scanners through 2027.
Ten ADRs will represent one common share, with the final per-ADR price to be set through bookbuilding shortly before the July 10th debut. SK hynix said the total raise could change from the 45.45 trillion won ceiling. BofA Securities, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and JP Morgan are managing the sale. The regulatory review is expected to conclude by July 3rd, with the new shares registering on the Korea Exchange on July 29th.
Both the Yongin fab and the Cheongju packaging plant will reach volume output in 2027. The company confirmed the ADR plan in early June alongside a pledge to double wafer capacity within five years, a timeline chairman Chey acknowledged would do little to shorten the shortage. DRAM contract prices have run higher through 2026 as the three memory makers tilt wafer capacity toward HBM, which consumes around three times the silicon per gigabyte of standard DDR5.
Two days prior to the announcement, SK hynix passed Samsung Electronics to become South Korea's most valuable listed company, ending a 26-year run at the top. Its Korea-listed shares rose 5.5% in after-hours trading following the disclosure.