SK Hynix raises $26.5 bn in record US listing and warns of severe memory shortage through 2030

South Korea’s SK Hynix completed a $26.5 billion American Depositary Receipt offering on the Nasdaq, the largest ever foreign listing in the United States. The company sold 177.9 million ADRs at $149 each, and shares jumped 13‑17% on the first trading day, closing around $168‑170 and giving the firm a market value exceeding $1 trillion.

In an interview on the debut day, CEO Kwak Noh‑jung warned that global demand for DRAM and high‑bandwidth memory will outstrip supply, forecasting the worst‑ever memory shortage in 2027 and continued imbalance beyond 2030. He said SK Hynix is expanding capacity but faces limits, and that the United States, Japan and Southeast Asia remain under consideration for new wafer‑fab sites.

The fundraising is intended to finance advanced packaging facilities, new production lines in South Korea, and U.S. investments including a $4 billion packaging plant in Indiana and a $10 billion AI solutions venture. The strong investor response underscores the chipmaker’s pivotal role in the AI supply chain and its impact on the broader technology market.