SK Hynix shares jumped 13% on the Nasdaq in their U.S. trading debut, underscoring robust investor demand for the South Korean memory chipmaker’s American depositary receipts.
The listing raised $26.5 billion, marking one of the largest capital raises in the semiconductor sector this year and reflecting confidence in the company’s position in the high-bandwidth memory market critical for artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The sharp premium over the offering price indicates that buyers are willing to pay up for exposure to AI-driven memory demand, even as broader semiconductor stocks have faced volatility in recent weeks.
The move suggests that institutional and retail investors view SK Hynix’s technological edge in HBM (high-bandwidth memory) as a durable competitive advantage, insulating it from cyclical downturns that have affected other parts of the chip industry.
This development follows a strong reaction in Seoul, where SK Hynix shares also surged nearly 13% on Thursday after the company announced its plans to list on the Nasdaq.
The dual-market enthusiasm highlights the global scale of the AI infrastructure build-out and the critical role memory suppliers play in supporting data center expansion.