SK Hynix, South Korea’s memory chip giant, began trading on the Nasdaq earlier today after raising $26.5 billion in the largest US listing by a foreign company in history. The company priced its American Depositary Receipts at $149 each, surpassing the previous record held by Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba, which raised $25 billion in its 2014 IPO.
The South Korean chipmaker sold 177.9 million ADRs, with the stock trading under the ticker SKHY on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. The offering was more than seven times oversubscribed, reflecting massive investor appetite for exposure to the booming AI memory market.
SK Hynix controls roughly 64% of the global market for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, which are essential components in Nvidia GPUs and other AI systems powering the current artificial intelligence boom. The company supplies major tech firms including Nvidia and Google, making it a linchpin of the global AI infrastructure supply chain.
The South Korean company has faced unprecedented demand for its HBM3E and HBM4 memory products as data center operators race to build out AI capacity. According to a social media post from analyst commentary, SK Hynix’s Q1 2026 revenue reached $35.5 billion, up 198% year over year, with net income surging 398% to $27 billion in a single quarter.
SK Hynix plans to deploy the capital toward manufacturing expansion to ease persistent memory chip shortages. In June, the company’s chairman announced plans to double its wafer production capacity over the next five years to meet ongoing AI-driven demand. Memory chip supplies are expected to remain tight through 2030 despite the expansion efforts.
When Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba raised $25 billion in September 2014, it set the record for the largest US IPO by a foreign company at that time, according to Reuters and Bloomberg. SK Hynix’s $26.5 billion debut exceeds that milestone by $1.5 billion, underscoring the scale of investor hunger for exposure to AI memory suppliers.
Sources
- Bloomberg — SK Hynix raised $26.5 billion in its offering, with the company becoming the largest foreign debut in US history
- Reuters — SK Hynix priced ADRs at $149, raising about $26.5 billion, with the offering more than seven times oversubscribed
- Nasdaq Trader — Confirmed SK Hynix listed and began trading on Nasdaq Global Select Market on July 10, 2026
- Yahoo Finance and X (formerly Twitter) analyst commentary — Q1 2026 revenue of $35.5 billion (up 198% YoY) and net income of $27 billion; SK Hynix controls 64% of global HBM market
- Reuters — SK Hynix aims to double wafer capacity over next five years; memory chip supplies expected to remain tight until 2030
- Bloomberg and Financial Times — Alibaba’s 2014 IPO raised $25 billion, the previous record for a foreign company’s US listing
