On Wednesday, SK Hynix from South Korea revealed it’s contemplating a U.S. stock market entry, motivated by a significant rise in its valuation due to the worldwide surge in demand for artificial intelligence hardware.

Positioned at the forefront of the AI infrastructure expansion, the memory chip manufacturer announced through a regulatory document that it is “assessing various strategies to boost corporate value,” which includes the possibility of a U.S. listing involving treasury shares. However, the company emphasized that no definitive decision has been reached yet.

Opting for a U.S. listing would allow American investors to directly engage with SK Hynix shares, which have experienced a nearly 230% increase in Seoul’s market this year, fueled by strong appetite for AI technology.

In response to a Korea Exchange inquiry on Tuesday, SK Hynix was asked to clarify a report by Korea Economic Daily. The report indicated that the company received proposals to list approximately 2.4% of its shares as American depositary receipts (ADRs) backed by treasury stock.

ADRs are tradable certificates issued by U.S. banks that represent shares in a foreign company. While they tend to trade with lower liquidity than a full U.S. listing, which can deter some investors, ADRs use existing shares rather than new stock, preserving value for existing shareholders.

SK Hynix holds treasury shares equivalent to about 2.4% of its issued stock, according to the company’s investor relations website.

Shares of SK Hynix rose 4% on Wednesday following its statement, before paring gains on Thursday, trading over 2% lower.

The company has cemented its lead in high-bandwidth memory chips, which are used in Nvidia’s AI processors. 

A U.S. listing could help narrow valuation gaps between the company and U.S.-listed memory rival Micron Technology, as well as Samsung Electronics. 

SK Hynix has also been committing significant capital at home and abroad to expand its supply capacity, as it races to keep up with growing AI demand. 

The firm has committed nearly $4 billion to an advanced packaging fab in Indiana, aligning with Washington’s aim to expand domestic chip production. 

SK Hynix is also set to benefit from the government’s growing support of the local semiconductor industry. 

South Korea is considering building a 4.5 trillion won ($3.06 billion) foundry, funded by state and private capital to nurture local chipmakers amid growing demand for AI chips, according to a Reuters report on Wednesday. 

The report added that South Korean President Lee Jae Myung met with executives from chipmakers, including Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, on the same day to discuss plans to maintain the country’s lead in memory chips and support its local chip manufacturing.