AI Chipmaker SK hynix Secures $26.5 Billion to Boost Capacity
South Korean memory chipmaker SK hynix raised $26.5 billion in its U.S. market debut Friday (July 10), completing the largest-ever U.S. listing by a foreign company, the Financial Times reported Friday.
The company’s U.S. market debut followed a first quarter in which SK hynix saw its revenue nearly triple year over year to 52.6 trillion South Korean won (about $34.5 billion), driven by demand for its chips for use in artificial intelligence (AI), according to the report.
On SK hynix’s main listing, the Kospi in Seoul, the company’s shares have leapt more than 600% over the past year, and its market cap has topped $1 trillion, per the report.
Bloomberg reported Friday that SK hynix has a “dominant” position in the supply of the high-bandwidth memory needed for AI computing and that the company plans to use the proceeds of its U.S. offering to build additional capacity.
Reuters reported Friday that the demand for AI has made high-bandwidth memory chips a “scarce commodity” and has driven up both the price of the products and investor interest in the products’ manufacturers.
The Reuters reported added that while there was a recent pullback in chip stocks, investors remain enthusiastic about the stocks due to the billions of dollars in capital spending that companies are devoting to AI.
SK hynix said in a Friday press release that with its listing on the Nasdaq stock market, the company entered the heart of the global AI industry and capital markets and elevated its status as a global company.
The company said that it offers the stable supply capabilities required by Big Tech customers and that the listing will broaden its global investor base and solidify its position as a “Core AI Partner.”
In remarks delivered Friday at the Nasdaq Opening Bell ceremony, SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-Jung said high-bandwidth memory (HBM) “stands at the heart of the AI revolution” and that “SK hynix will be wherever AI is.”
It was reported in September that AI infrastructure spending by Big Tech is expected to surpass $2.8 trillion through 2029. Hyperscalers such as Google, Amazon and Microsoft have already spent billions to ease capacity constraints that have limited their ability to meet rising AI demand.
