Kioxia is preparing a US share listing that could raise as much as $10 billion, with a Nasdaq entry targeted for the April-June 2027 period, following SK Hynix's July arrival on the exchange.

The Chosun Daily, citing a September 14 Bloomberg report, says Kioxia is talking to Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan and expects to list as early as 2027. Like SK Hynix, Kioxia would use sponsored American Depositary Shares to pull in fresh capital and widen its investor base.

The idea surfaced in May. A month later, at Kioxia's 2026 annual shareholders' meeting, CFO Yoshihiko Kawamura called it a "highly meaningful project."

What would change for US investors?

Kioxia ADSs already trade in the United States — but unsponsored, over-the-counter, on OTC Markets' Pink Limited tier. That tier carries limited issuer reporting and disclosure, meaning higher risk for investors. A formal Nasdaq listing would have Kioxia sponsoring its ADSs directly and cutting that risk.

A portfolio manager at a $14 billion AI-focused Voya investment fund told Reuters he's interested, saying a US listing would make it easier to invest in Kioxia.

Why now? The AI memory squeeze

Kioxia's share price has climbed roughly 900 percent since the start of 2026, recently passing ¥100,000 ($620). Kawamura said the company is now considering a share split in Japan to bring the price back within reach of retail investors.

The driver is straightforward. The AI boom has inflated SSD demand, under-supply has pushed prices up, and Kioxia's revenues and profitability have surged with them.

What about an SK Hynix partnership?

Not so fast. In early September, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won floated the idea of an SK Hynix partnership with Kioxia, which already runs a manufacturing joint venture with Sandisk. Kioxia CEO Hiroo Ota told The Japan Times: "We can't just say, 'Well then, let's make it three companies.'"

He added: "We have no idea what prompted (Chey) to say what he did." There are no ongoing talks between the two companies, and the temperature looks frosty.

Still, the ties run deeper than the frost suggests:

• Kioxia uses SK Hynix DRAM in some of its SSDs
• JV partner Sandisk participates in SK Hynix's High-Bandwidth Flash (HBF) initiative
• SK Hynix holds Kioxia convertible bonds that could convert into a 14.19 percent voting stake — the largest single voting holding

SK Hynix can trigger that conversion at will. But Japanese government approval would be required, since it would hand a foreign company voting control over a Japanese one.

What has Kioxia actually confirmed?

A September 15 Kioxia statement walked a careful line. "These reports are not announcements made by the Company," it said of the listing coverage, while confirming: "The Company is preparing to list American Depositary Shares representing its common shares on a U.S. stock exchange to steadily and sustainably increase corporate value."

The statement cautioned that the schedule, listing market and method remain undecided, and that Kioxia "may decide not to continue pursuing the listing depending on the circumstances."

With three Wall Street banks reportedly engaged and a 2027 window in view, the listing plan now hinges on whether NAND's AI-driven pricing cycle — the same force that multiplied Kioxia's share price ninefold — holds through the preparation period.