Memory Chip Giant Sk Hynix Could Help End ‘rammageddon’ With Blockbuster Us Ipo

SK hynix, a South Korean representation spot elephantine already listed connected nan KOSPI, is laying nan groundwork for a imaginable U.S. listing that could reportedly raise an estimated $10 cardinal to $14 billion.

The institution announced this week that it has confidentially revenge a Form F-1 pinch nan the listing, targeting nan 2nd half of 2026.

But nan existent mobility isn’t conscionable really overmuch it tin raise: it’s whether a U.S. listing could summation is trading worth arsenic 1 of nan astir captious players successful nan AI spot proviso chain.

Despite its captious domiciled successful high-bandwidth representation (HBM), a cardinal constituent powering AI systems from companies for illustration Nvidia, nan banal has historically traded astatine a discount to world peers, according to a Seoul-based semiconductor analyst. It’s sewage a marketplace headdress of astir $440 billion, but it’s valuation multiples stay beneath those of U.S.-listed semiconductor firms, raising questions astir whether geography, alternatively than fundamentals, is partially driving nan gap.

The move is wide seen arsenic an effort to summation its valuation to lucifer world peers for illustration Micron.

“SK hynix’s U.S. listing could thief adjacent a long-standing valuation spread pinch world peers. Despite having comparable – aliases successful immoderate areas stronger accumulation capacity than U.S.-based chipmakers, nan Korean institution has historically traded astatine a discount, partially owed to its superior listing successful Korea,” nan expert told TechCrunch.

The expert besides mentioned structural factors shaping nan deal. “SK Square, SK hynix’s largest shareholder, which held 20.07% arsenic of December 2025, is required to support a liking of astatine slightest 20% nether Korea’s holding institution rules.”

Based connected existent stock prices, issuing astir 2% successful caller shares could raise $10 cardinal to $14 cardinal while allowing SK Square to support its ownership threshold, nan expert said. (Under Korea’s Fair Trade Act, holding companies must support minimum ownership stakes successful subsidiaries, astatine slightest 20% for listed entities, to clasp control.)

There’s precedent. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), for example, has seen its U.S.-listed shares waste and acquisition astatine a premium to its home shares astatine times, peculiarly during periods of beardown AI-driven demand, suggesting that cross-listing tin power really investors value nan aforesaid underlying business.

The move is already rippling crossed nan broader Korean spot sector. Following SK hynix’s filing, immoderate investors are now pushing Samsung Electronics to see a akin U.S. listing. Artisan Partners, a awesome shareholder, said Friday that a U.S. listing (technically known arsenic an American depositary receipt, aliases ADR), could thief Samsung boost its valuation, too, arsenic good arsenic springiness U.S. unit investors a chance to bargain its stock, according to a Bloomberg report.

A superior push to meet AI-driven demand

SK hynix’s planned ADR listing is besides wide seen arsenic a move to unafraid backing up of accrued superior spending to meet nan rising request for representation from AI semiconductors.

At its yearly wide gathering connected March 25, SK hynix CEO Noh-Jung Kwaksaid financial capacity will beryllium cardinal to sustaining maturation successful nan AI era, adding that nan institution is targeting astir $75 cardinal (more than 100 trillion KRW) successful nett rate to support semipermanent investments.

Soaring costs for memory, and constricted proviso has been 1 of nan bottlenecks slowing AI builds, but besides impacting different industries, for illustration user gamers. It’s a business that’s been dubbed ‘RAMmageddon’ and, if thing successful nan marketplace changes, is expected to proceed connected until astatine slightest 2027, Nature reports.

Time will show if that last day prediction holds up. The tech giants are moving connected solving RAMmageddon successful different ways beyond accrued manufacturing. For instance, Google this week introduced a tech called TurboQuant, an ultra-efficient AI representation compression algorithm. It allows AI to go vastly much businesslike successful utilizing memory.

Nevertheless, nan signals bespeak that much representation accumulation will beryllium basal arsenic well. SK hynix is gearing up for a activity of capital-intensive projects. The institution plans to put astir $400 cardinal by 2050 to build a semiconductor cluster successful Yongin, South Korea. It is besides constructing caller accommodation successful South Korea and Indiana, pinch planned investments of astir $25 cardinal and $3.3 billion, respectively, underscoring nan standard of superior required.

The chipmaker said this week it will get precocious utmost ultraviolet (EUV) lithography scanners from ASML by 2027 successful a woody worthy $7.9 billion, aimed astatine boosting high-bandwidth representation (HBM) accumulation for AI.

All of this would beryllium supported by a blockbuster U.S. IPO. And that could lead different Korean spot makers to follow.