SK Hynix advisors win big fee windfall after modest SpaceX payday

Global investment banks and brokerages leading SK Hynix's mega share sale earned nearly $260 million in fees, a boost for the industry which took in a relatively modest $500 million from SpaceX's record share sale last month.

The ‌fees equate ⁠to ⁠about 0.97% of the total amount raised, SK Hynix's filings ​showed, meaning bankers earned more as a percentage of deal size ​than those who worked on SpaceX's initial public offering.

SpaceX bankers earned 0.67% or $500 million of the $75 ​billion in an IPO which eclipsed ⁠the previous ‌record set by Saudi Aramco in ​2019, as ​well as SK Hynix's U.S. listing ⁠this week.


Citigroup earned over $70 million from the SK Hynix sale, which was 20% more than other banks on the deal, said a person with direct knowledge of the matter, who declined to be identified when discussing confidential information.

Citigroup was a joint global co-ordinator and the depository ‌bank on the deal. The bank declined to comment on fees earned.

Bank of America, ​Goldman Sachs ​and JPMorgan were ⁠also global co-ordinators.

JPMorgan declined to comment. Bank of America and Goldman Sachs did not respond to requests for ​comment.

South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix raised about $26.5 billion after pricing its U.S. stock at $149 per depository receipt, a 2.7% premium over its average share price in Seoul over the past three days.