SK hynix halts Solidigm pre-IPO and US listing review

SK hynix disclosed on October 23 that it has suspended its review of a pre-IPO and US listing for its grandchild subsidiary Solidigm, according to bloter.net. The decision came 79 days after the company's August 5 filing, which stated that nothing had been confirmed.

The company cited capital market conditions and a correction in semiconductor stocks as reasons for the suspension. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley had been selected as lead underwriters for the listing.

SK hynix shares fell from 1,668,000 won on August 5 to 1,223,000 won on October 22, the day before the withdrawal announcement.

Regulators had also raised concerns. At an October 19 parliamentary audit, the governor of the Financial Supervisory Service said both the FSC and FSS judge the plan to conflict with duplicate listing rules. The chairman of the Financial Services Commission said at an October 22 audit that duplicate-listing guidelines apply and that SK Square and SK hynix must fulfill shareholder protection duties as parent companies.

Earlier corporate moves

SK hynix completed a 40 trillion won share buyback, and SK Inc. disclosed a plan to sell about 2.3% of its shares for 944 billion won. SK Square sits above SK hynix as an intermediate holding company, created when SK Telecom was split in 2021, and an SK AI Company layer was added between SK hynix and Solidigm earlier this year.