July 6 (Reuters) – South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix will launch a U.S. listing on Monday to raise about $28 billion, according to regulatory filings, as it capitalises on the global AI boom in one of the world’s largest new share sales.
The company will sell 17.79 million new shares in the depository receipt listing on the Nasdaq, making it one of the world’s most valuable tech firms.
Ten ADRs will represent one common share and the stock will be sold in a price range due to be revealed on Monday, based on SK Hynix’s Seoul trading price.
SK Hynix’s share price was down 4.2% on Monday but the stock is up about 273% this year, as it rides surging global investor demand for AI stocks. Korea’s KOSPI was down 2.2% Monday.
South Korea last week unveiled a sweeping industrial strategy centred on semiconductors and artificial intelligence, with a $576 billion chip investment program in the country’s southwest to help the nation remain competitive in the global AI race.
SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics will anchor the investment program, the government said.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Monday ordered officials to move quickly to get to work on major chip and AI projects announced last week.
He warned that delays in permits, land acquisition, and securing power and water supply could undermine the country’s bid to dominate advanced industries.
SK Hynix has been among the world’s largest beneficiaries of the AI boom as it outperformed its major rivals Samsung and Micron.
The final price of the New York listing is due to be set on Thursday, ahead of the stock starting trade on Friday, regulatory filings showed. The company’s management will meet global investors on a roadshow this week.
The deal is expected to be the second-biggest share sale after a record $85.7 billion initial public offering by SpaceX last month, surpassing Saudi Aramco’s $25.6 billion IPO in 2019 and Alibaba’s similar-sized offering in 2014.
SK Hynix is a key supplier of high-bandwidth memory chips used in AI systems by customers such as Nvidia and Google.
The company last week said it would invest 100 trillion won ($64.38 billion) to build new chip plants, including one for NAND flash memory, as part of a massive South Korean investment drive aimed at spreading returns from the AI boom.
SK Hynix is expected to join the chip-heavy Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index, analysts said, helping pave the way for a surge in passive investments. A NASDAQ listing should help reduce the valuation gap with smaller U.S. rival Micron, they said.
Last month, HSBC said it would raise its valuation of SK Hynix by applying a 20% premium to its previous price-to-book multiple of 2.8 times, implying a multiple of 3.4 times, “reflecting more proactive shareholder-friendly initiatives and improved accessibility to global investors.”
(Reporting by Scott Murdoch and Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Stephen Coates)
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