The offering will be conducted in the form of American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), with each ADR representing 0.1 ordinary share listed in South Korea. Ten ADRs are equivalent to one ordinary share. Based on SK Hynix’s closing price of KRW 2.425 million in Seoul on July 3, the indicative reference price for each ADR is KRW 242,500, or approximately US$158.15. SK Hynix plans to issue 17.79 million new shares, with total proceeds expected to reach approximately US$28 billion.

All proceeds will be allocated to expanding advanced memory chip production capacity and procuring critical semiconductor equipment. Specifically, the funds will be invested across three major projects: Phase 1 construction of the Yongin semiconductor cluster, expansion of the seventh-generation advanced packaging line in Cheongju, and large-scale purchases of ASML EUV lithography systems.

Offering Size

When SK Hynix initially filed its registration documents in late June, the market expected the offering to raise around US$29 billion. However, over the following two weeks, the South Korean semiconductor sector experienced a broad pullback, with SK Hynix’s domestic share price declining by approximately 5%.

On July 6, the company revised the ADR pricing reference from the June 23 closing price of KRW 2.555 million to the July 3 closing price of KRW 2.425 million, reducing the expected fundraising amount from roughly US$29 billion to around US$28 billion.

The adjustment reflects the decline in the share price rather than any decision by the company to reduce the size of the offering. The number of shares offered remains unchanged at 17.79 million. The final offering price will be determined through the book-building process and is expected to be finalized on Thursday, July 9.

Despite the slight reduction in size, the IPO is still expected to rank among the three largest IPOs in global history, based on current exchange rates. It would trail only SpaceX (US$85.7 billion) while surpassing Saudi Aramco (US$25.6 billion) and Alibaba (approximately US$25 billion). It would also set a new record as the largest initial public offering by a foreign company in the U.S. capital markets.

The underwriting syndicate features a top-tier lineup, with BofA Securities, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan serving as joint lead underwriters. Citibank will act as the ADR depositary bank, while the Korea Securities Depository will hold custody of the underlying ordinary shares. The underwriting fee is approximately 0.5%.

The IPO has already secured indications of interest from three institutional investors. Baillie Gifford Overseas, funds managed by Coatue Management, and Situational Awareness Partners have each expressed interest in purchasing ADSs at the IPO price, with total potential subscriptions of up to US$7 billion.

Among them, Situational Awareness Partners has become one of Wall Street’s most talked-about funds in 2026, managed by Leopold Aschenbrenner, a fund manager from the post-2000 generation. The fund’s participation itself is viewed as a signal that the market continues to have confidence in the long-term AI memory chip investment narrative.

Valuation Thesis

SK Hynix is currently trading at approximately 6.2x forward 12-month earnings, below Micron Technology’s valuation of around 7x. On a forward price-to-sales basis, SK Hynix trades at 3.6x, also below Micron’s 4.6x.

Part of this valuation gap reflects the long-standing "Korea Discount" in the South Korean equity market, where concerns over corporate governance, geopolitical risks, and relatively lower market liquidity typically result in Korean companies trading at lower valuations than their U.S. peers.

According to analysts at HSBC, Micron has traded at an average valuation premium of approximately 35% over SK Hynix over the past 13 years. The primary drivers include greater accessibility for U.S. investors, Micron’s stronger shareholder return policies, and Micron’s smaller earnings base, which provides greater earnings beta.

HSBC believes an IPO price of US$166 would be attractive for U.S. investors and expects the stock to have roughly 20% upside after listing, allowing it to gradually narrow its valuation gap with Micron. Some market analysts are even more optimistic, suggesting SK Hynix’s domestic shares could have as much as 30% upside.

Fundamentally, the case for a valuation re-rating is supported by strong financial performance. In the first quarter of 2026, SK Hynix reported revenue of KRW 52.58 trillion (approximately US$34.5 billion), up 198% year-on-year. Operating profit reached KRW 37.61 trillion, a 405% increase, with an operating margin of 72%, the highest in the company’s history.

For the full year 2025, the company generated revenue of KRW 97.1 trillion (approximately US$63.77 billion) and net profit of KRW 42.95 trillion (approximately US$28.19 billion), both record highs.

Risk Factors

Antitrust Class Action Risk

In late June, SK Hynix added a new material legal risk disclosure in its amended Form F-1, highlighting potential U.S. antitrust class action litigation.

While the prospectus does not disclose specific details of the case, the inclusion of the disclosure suggests that the company has already received related inquiries or may face legal proceedings. For a foreign company preparing to list in the United States, potential consequences of antitrust litigation include fines, business restrictions, and reputational damage.

ADR Conversion Risk

The convertibility between the U.S.-listed ADRs and the underlying Korean ordinary shares is a key structural issue for arbitrage traders.

The prospectus contains language that leaves room for uncertainty. ADS holders may surrender their ADSs and withdraw the underlying ordinary shares. Likewise, holders of ordinary shares may deposit those shares with the Korean custodian in exchange for ADSs.

However, when accepting ordinary shares and issuing new ADSs, the depositary may first need SK Hynix’s approval. Furthermore, if issuing additional ADSs would exceed legal limits, corporate charter restrictions, or company-imposed issuance caps, the depositary is not obligated to accept additional deposits.

The prospectus also warns that investors who surrender ADSs and withdraw ordinary shares may not necessarily be able to redeposit those shares later to obtain new ADSs.

This means the arbitrage mechanism between the two markets is not fully frictionless. If ADRs trade at a significant premium, arbitrageurs cannot simply purchase Korean shares, convert them into ADRs, and sell them indefinitely because new ADR issuance remains subject to company approval. As a result, ADRs may trade at persistent premiums, while the inability to fully arbitrage price differences could contribute to greater price volatility.

Sustainability of AI Demand

SK Hynix’s share price has risen approximately 260% year-to-date, driven largely by expectations that global AI infrastructure spending will continue to expand.

However, since early July, the stock has fallen 11.58%, primarily following concerns triggered by Meta’s recent "selling compute capacity" developments. If AI capital expenditure growth slows, the supply-demand balance in the memory chip market could shift.

Customer Concentration Risk

As one of NVIDIA’s key suppliers of HBM (High Bandwidth Memory), SK Hynix has relatively high exposure to a single major customer. Any changes in customer market share or procurement strategy could materially impact the company’s financial performance.

Geopolitical Risk

As a U.S. ally, South Korea occupies a critical position in the global semiconductor supply chain. Any escalation in U.S.-China technology tensions could affect SK Hynix’s operations in China, which remains one of its major end markets.

Market Impact.

Under Nasdaq’s accelerated index inclusion rules, introduced in March this year, newly listed companies are evaluated based on market capitalization on their seventh trading day. Eligible companies may be added to the Nasdaq-100 Index as early as the 15th trading day.

With an estimated market capitalization exceeding US$1.15 trillion, SK Hynix is widely expected to qualify for accelerated inclusion.

Once added to the Nasdaq-100, ETFs and index funds tracking the index will be required to purchase SK Hynix ADRs. Invesco QQQ Trust, with approximately US$477 billion in assets under management, is expected to become one of the largest sources of passive buying demand.

This mirrors the index inclusion dynamics seen after SpaceX’s listing, where the combination of passive fund inflows and relatively limited free float created significant short-term price volatility.

In addition, SK Hynix’s Nasdaq listing will reshape the global memory semiconductor investment landscape. Previously, among the world's three largest memory chip manufacturers, only Micron Technology was listed in the United States. SK Hynix’s addition will allow U.S. investors to gain direct exposure to a leading HBM manufacturer during regular U.S. trading hours, without relying on over-the-counter ADRs or trading on the Korean stock market.