SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics' Surge: Extending Asset Logic from Traditional Finance to Crypto

Less than five months since 2026, the Korea KOSPI index has already gained a total of 100%, climbing from around 5,000 points at the beginning of the year to above 8,000 points, with a circuit breaker triggered during trading. This increase is close to the 102% record set by the Nasdaq 100 index during the internet bubble in 1999. However, unlike the widespread alarm in the market back then, few observers currently adopt the same cautious attitude toward the Korean stock market.

The core difference lies in the fundamental driving logic. The current rally in KOSPI is primarily driven by a super cycle in storage chips fueled by global AI computing power expansion. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix together account for over 43% of the KOSPI index weight, and their stock performance directly determines the direction of the Korean stock index. Investors believe that global demand for storage chips is undergoing a structural shift—from previous cyclical fluctuations to a more sustained growth trend—and this is not merely a short-term rally driven by valuation bubbles.

How are storage chips evolving from cyclical commodities to strategic assets?

Historically, the storage chip market has been highly dependent on consumer electronics cycles. The refresh cycles of personal computers and smartphones directly influenced the demand and prices for DRAM and NAND. However, the exponential growth in memory bandwidth and capacity requirements for AI training and inference workloads has completely changed this pattern. High-bandwidth memory has become a core component of every AI accelerator, whether it’s Nvidia’s products or custom solutions from cloud service providers, relying on HBM stacks to support massive data throughput for model training and inference.

Under this transformation, storage chips have shifted from passive demand followers to active strategic bottlenecks. Analysts expect memory chip shortages could persist until 2027, placing companies like Samsung and SK Hynix in an unprecedented bargaining position with large tech firms. IDC forecasts that global memory revenue will grow from $226 billion in 2025 to nearly $595 billion in 2026, nearly tripling. This level of growth indicates that the storage chip market is no longer a traditional cyclical sector but has gained more certain growth attributes.

What roles do Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix play in the AI chip supply chain?

Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are both top-tier global storage chip manufacturers, but they show subtle differences in the competitive landscape of AI storage. SK Hynix specializes in HBM technology and is a major supplier of Nvidia’s HBM memory chips, becoming a key hub in the global AI supply chain. Its stock price surged over 900% in the past year, with a market cap briefly surpassing $1.08 trillion on May 27, 2026. In Q1 2026, the company’s revenue reached 52.58 trillion won, up 198% year-over-year; operating profit was 37.61 trillion won, a 405% increase, setting a record for Korean chip companies’ quarterly revenue exceeding 50 trillion won.

Samsung Electronics, on the other hand, has a broader scope in the integrated semiconductor landscape. As the world’s largest storage chip manufacturer, Samsung also has a presence in wafer foundry and system LSI sectors. On May 6, 2026, Samsung’s market cap surpassed $1 trillion, becoming the second Asian company after TSMC to join the “trillion-dollar club.” Samsung’s semiconductor division also shows explosive growth—revenue in Q1 2026 reached 81.7 trillion won, accounting for over 50% of the group’s total revenue for the first time; chip business operating profit surged 48 times year-over-year. Currently, Samsung has confirmed that all HBM4 capacity for 2026 is sold out, and demand for server memory is expected to remain strong in the second half of the year.

What does the expansion of global semiconductor capital expenditure mean for the storage sector?

To understand the sustainability of the storage chip market, it’s essential to view it within the macro context of global semiconductor capital expenditure. In 2026, global semiconductor capex is projected to grow by 32% year-over-year to $227.2 billion. Leading North American cloud service providers have raised their capex guidance to about $830 billion, a 79% increase. This level of investment is pushing the semiconductor industry to unprecedented heights—global semiconductor revenue in 2026 could surpass $1.3 trillion, marking the largest annual increase in nearly two decades.

As a core component of AI infrastructure, storage chips directly benefit from this capex expansion. Due to the “absorption effect” of HBM on advanced process capacity, along with long cleanroom construction cycles and extended lead times for key equipment, new effective capacity is expected to be released only by late 2027 to 2028. During this period, supply shortages will likely persist, and suppliers’ pricing power will remain high.

How do the valuation fluctuations of traditional semiconductor giants reflect in the crypto trading ecosystem?

The investment demand for traditional financial assets among crypto market users is rapidly increasing. Unlike traditional stock trading, which is limited by market hours, fiat deposit processes, and settlement cycles, tokenized assets inherently feature 24/7 trading, direct stablecoin deposits and withdrawals, and instant settlement. Gate’s TradFi zone offers users convenient access to the price movements of global tech giants through products like xStocks and perpetual stock contracts. For example, xStocks tokenized assets are backed 1:1 by real stocks held by regulated custodians, with prices closely tracking the real-time performance of the underlying assets.

Currently, Gate covers tokenized versions of Tesla, Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, and other tech giants, offering perpetual contracts with up to 20x leverage for popular stocks, supporting both long and short strategies. This mode allows crypto users to manage funds and execute strategies across crypto assets and traditional tech stocks on a single platform without needing separate brokerage accounts.

What are the main rationales and potential risks for crypto users participating in tokenized traditional stock trading?

From a logical perspective, crypto users allocating funds to tokenized assets of semiconductor leaders like Samsung and SK Hynix mainly base their decisions on two levels. First is the structural narrative of AI chip demand. The market generally views this growth not as a short-term pulse but as a natural extension of the macro trend that AI infrastructure development is still in its early stages. Second is the integration of capital efficiency between crypto and traditional markets. Users can manage risk exposure across asset classes under a USDT margin system without frequent transfers between multiple platforms.

However, potential risks should not be overlooked. The rapid rise of the KOSPI from 5,000 to 8,000 points over a few months is approaching the extreme performance of the Nasdaq 100 during the internet bubble, indicating a risk of short-term correction. Additionally, while tokenized assets are closely pegged to their underlying stocks, factors such as custodial structures, compliance frameworks, and secondary market liquidity could lead to abnormal fluctuations—premiums or discounts—especially in extreme market conditions.

Where are the boundary conditions of the storage super cycle?

No structural rally lasts indefinitely. Assessing the sustainability of this storage super cycle requires attention to several key boundary conditions. First, the actual pace of AI demand realization. Current expectations are based on continuous high growth in AI training and inference needs. If cloud service providers’ capex guidance is revised downward or AI commercialization progresses more slowly than expected, the entire semiconductor cycle outlook may need re-evaluation. Second, whether supply-side constraints will ease over time. As new wafer fabs come online, the supply-demand gap for HBM will gradually narrow, which could limit suppliers’ pricing power. Lastly, changes in the global macroeconomic environment—including interest rate trends and geopolitical risks—will also systematically influence the valuation of risk assets.

How can the trend of the global chip industry enrich the diversification of crypto asset allocations through tokenization?

The linkage between crypto assets and traditional tech industries is deepening. Upstream hardware sectors like storage chips often lead downstream application booms, serving as strong leading indicators. Through tokenized assets, crypto users can more conveniently participate in the value discovery of this industry chain. When the crypto market is in correction or consolidation, allocating to independently driven traditional tech assets can diversify portfolio returns and risks.

This linkage also has feedback effects. The active capital volume and trading frequency within the crypto ecosystem are injecting liquidity characteristics into tokenized traditional assets that differ from those in conventional markets. The boundaries between these asset classes are increasingly blurred at the trading level, while maintaining separate narrative foundations. This dynamic evolution offers an important window into how global capital reallocates across different asset categories.

Summary

The phenomenon of Korea’s chip stocks surpassing a trillion-dollar market cap is essentially a tangible reflection of the global AI computing power race in the capital markets. The shift of storage chips from cyclical commodities to strategic assets, combined with sustained expansion in massive capital expenditure, forms the core driver of this semiconductor super cycle. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, as key beneficiaries of this trend, demonstrate explosive performance and valuation revaluation processes that provide concrete narratives connecting traditional finance and the crypto world. Crypto users participate in the traditional semiconductor market through tokenized assets primarily for efficiency and cross-asset integration, but must also remain aware of risks from short-term overheating and structural variable changes. The resonance of technology and capital continues, and identifying boundary conditions will be crucial to grasping this process.

FAQ

Q: Which currently has an advantage in AI storage chips—Samsung Electronics or SK Hynix?

Both companies have their strengths. SK Hynix has deep expertise in HBM technology and is Nvidia’s core supplier, leading in HBM market share. Samsung Electronics has broader capabilities across the semiconductor landscape, including storage chips, wafer foundry, and system LSI. As of 2026, both are in a supply-constrained position, with differences mainly in technical routes and customer structures.

Q: Is there a risk of price disconnection in tokenized traditional stock trading?

Tokenized assets backed 1:1 by real stocks held by regulated custodians tend to closely track their underlying assets under normal market conditions. However, in extreme market scenarios or liquidity crises, secondary market prices may temporarily diverge, resulting in premiums or discounts. Users should carefully review product documentation, understanding the underlying custody and redemption mechanisms before trading.

Q: How long is this storage super cycle expected to last?

Mainstream analysis suggests that the shortage of memory chips will at least continue until 2027, driven by long lead times for new wafer fab capacity, limited advanced process capacity, and sustained strong AI demand. This outlook depends on AI capex maintaining high growth, so ongoing monitoring of cloud providers’ capex guidance and chip price trends is necessary.