SEOUL, July 24, 2026, 21:20 (KST)
- The Korea Exchange was shut. SK Hynix finished the session down 8.34% at 1,759,000 won.
- The estimated loss in value of 114 trillion won far exceeds the 944 billion-won payout ordered by the court against Chey Tae-won. Earnings are due on July 29.
SK Hynix lost about 114 trillion won in market capitalization on Friday, based on the 160,000-won decline in its share price and the number of outstanding shares.
The loss equated to roughly 121 times the amount granted by the court. The sum is owed to Chairman Chey Tae-won, rather than the semiconductor firm.
The scale difference indicates that a wider pullback was behind much of the selling. Shares of Samsung Electronics KRX:005930 declined by 7.59%, and the KOSPI dropped 5.72%.
| Instrument | Friday close | Friday move | Change from July 16 |
|---|---|---|---|
| SK Hynix | 1,759,000 won | down 8.34% | down 4.51% |
| Samsung Electronics | 249,500 won | down 7.59% | down 2.16% |
| KOSPI | 6,690.62 | down 5.72% | down 1.91% |
The comparison is based on closing prices recorded on July 16 and July 24.
On Friday, Hynix trailed Samsung by 0.75 percentage point. Compared to the KOSPI, it fell behind by 2.62 points.
The Seoul High Court instructed Chey to pay 944 billion won, less than the 1.38 trillion won determined in 2024. The ruling allows him to settle the payment in cash while keeping his shares.
“This is unlikely to impact SK Group’s management control,” Park Ju-gun, the head of corporate analysis firm Leaders Index, said. Reuters
Chey does not have a direct stake in Hynix. He possesses 17.9% of SK Inc. (KRX:034730), which in turn holds a 32% share of SK Square (KRX:402340), the main shareholder of Hynix.
SK Inc. shares ended the session down 3.82%. SK Square dropped 9.17%. As a result, Hynix’s share price aligned more closely with Samsung and SK Square than with SK Inc.
Hynix, which had risen 4.2% from July 16 through Thursday, finished Friday with a 4.5% loss for the week. The KOSPI dropped 1.9%, marking its fifth consecutive week of declines.
The environment was challenging. Oil surged by almost 40% in July, and bond yields moved higher. Investors also doubted the payoff from massive AI infrastructure investment.
South Korea’s regulator brought forward the start date for stricter leveraged-ETF cash requirements to July 31. Individual investors must provide a 30 million won deposit. ETFs tracking Hynix and Samsung have faced criticism for heightening market swings.
Hynix is scheduled to release its second-quarter earnings on July 29 at 09:00 KST. The outlook will depend on pricing, demand for high-bandwidth memory, and cost control.
Friday’s comparative performance now serves as the key indicator. Ongoing lag behind Samsung would indicate concerns unique to the company. If the gap narrows, it would suggest the leverage-unwind theory is plausible.
Risks continue to be focused on weaker memory prices, the unwinding of leveraged ETFs, and the possibility of a court appeal. On the other hand, robust earnings guidance may trigger another significant rebound.
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