SK Hynix launches $28 billion Nasdaq ADR offering as AI demand surges

South Korean memory‑chip maker SK Hynix is raising about $28 billion (43 trillion won) through an American depositary receipt (ADR) offering on the Nasdaq. The company will sell 177.9 million ADRs – ten ADRs per ordinary share – representing 17.79 million new shares. The book‑build has been “more than seven times oversubscribed” with institutional demand exceeding $7 billion from investors such as Baillie Gifford, Coatue Management and Situational Awareness Partners. Pricing is expected after the South Korean market close on Thursday, with trading slated to begin on 10 July 2026 under the ticker SKHY.

Proceeds are earmarked for expanding high‑bandwidth memory (HBM) capacity, including new wafer‑fab facilities in Yongin, South Korea, and additional equipment purchases such as ASML’s extreme‑ultraviolet lithography systems. The listing is one of the largest foreign debuts on U.S. exchanges, second only to Alibaba’s historic offering and comparable in size to SpaceX’s recent IPO. SK Hynix shares fell 3‑6% in Seoul amid broader market weakness, but the move gives U.S. investors direct exposure to a key supplier for AI accelerators used by Nvidia, Google and others.