SK Hynix Raises $26.5 Billion in Historic Nasdaq IPO, Valued Over $1 Trillion

South Korean memory chip giant SK Hynix completed the largest-ever U.S. stock offering by a foreign company overnight, debuting on the Nasdaq on Friday. The company raised a record $26.5 billion through American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) priced at $149 each, representing one ordinary share per 10 ADRs traded in Seoul. This IPO ranks as the second-largest in history, surpassing Alibaba and Aramco, and trailing only SpaceX's $85.7 billion raise last month.

SK Hynix, a key supplier of advanced memory components (HBM) for Nvidia's AI processors, saw phenomenal demand with a sevenfold oversubscription. The listing aims to reduce the longstanding "Korea Discount," where South Korean firms trade at significantly lower price-to-earnings multiples due to limited foreign investor access and complex corporate governance. Before the IPO, SK Hynix traded at a forward P/E of 4.8, compared to a global industry median of about 29.

The company’s stock surged over 230% in Seoul this past year amid the global AI boom and chip demand. Experts note that the Nasdaq listing provides direct access to the world's deepest capital markets, with expectations that the U.S. ADRs may trade at a premium to local shares due to investor convenience.

Proceeds from the IPO will partly fund SK Hynix’s expansion plans, including a new semiconductor complex in South Korea valued at approximately $880 billion, a joint initiative with the government and Samsung. However, analysts emphasize that most capital investments will continue to be financed through the company’s strong operating cash flow, projected to exceed 200 trillion won over the next two years.