South Korean Memory Duo Surges Over 8% as Temasek Seeks Direct Stakes in Samsung, SK Hynix

TradingKey - According to a report by South Korea's Asia Business Daily on August 12, Singapore's sovereign wealth fund Temasek recently decided to invest in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix (SKHY), and has approached relevant South Korean government departments to discuss the specific timing of the investment. This investment will be directly executed by Temasek's internal team, rather than delegated to external asset management companies.

Expectations of Temasek's potential entry boosted market confidence in memory giants, with both Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix surging more than 8% intraday. By the close, Samsung Electronics rose 6.68% to 255,500 won (approximately $192.11), while SK Hynix gained 5.54% to 1,504,000 won.

[Source: TradingView]

According to Temasek's official website, as of March 31, 2026, its net portfolio value stood at SGD 518 billion (approximately $401 billion), holding around 630 portfolio companies globally. Temasek previously participated in the South Korean market mainly indirectly through private equity funds. If this investment materializes, it will mark its first entry into the South Korean stock market through direct equity holdings.

Market views suggest that the leading positions of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix in the global HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) and NAND Flash markets align with the current investment theme of AI computing infrastructure, making them attractive to long-term capital. However, Temasek has not disclosed the specific investment amount or timeline, and whether it will ultimately materialize remains uncertain.