AI IPOs Are Draining Billions from Crypto – Here's Why It Matters

AI IPOs Are Draining Billions from Crypto – Here's Why It Matters

Artificial intelligence (AI) has not only been dominating headlines, but has also been soaking up capital that might otherwise have flowed into other parts of the financial market, including cryptocurrencies.

This trend continues as SK Hynix (000660) gears for its blockbuster IPO on July 10. The South Korean memory chip giant is raising about $24.5 billion to $28 billion through the sale of 177.9 million American depositary receipts, a deal that has reportedly been more than seven times oversubscribed, according to Bloomberg.

The offering has attracted global long-only funds, sovereign wealth funds and specialist technology investors, with firms including Baillie Gifford, Coatue Management and Situational Awareness Partners indicating interest in buying up to $7 billion worth of shares. The proceeds will fund new manufacturing capacity and advanced chipmaking equipment to meet booming AI demand.

China is following with a semiconductor mega listing of its own. Changxin Memory Technologies (CXMT), the country's largest DRAM maker, will begin book building on July 15 for a 29.5 billion yuan ($4.3 billion) Shanghai IPO, with subscriptions opening a day later, according to Reuters.

The U.S.-blocked company plans to use the proceeds to upgrade production lines and technology after posting explosive growth, including first-quarter revenue of 50.8 billion yuan, up 700% year-on-year. Reuters estimates CXMT held around 7.7% of the global DRAM market last year.

These deals follow SpaceX (SPCX) and Cerebras (CBRS), two AI-related listings that have fueled enthusiasm across semiconductor and memory stocks. Together they reinforce a broader theme: investors are allocating fresh capital to companies building the infrastructure behind artificial intelligence rather than to crypto assets.

Bitcoin has fallen roughly 50% from its October all-time high to around $63,000, as investors have increasingly favored AI infrastructure plays over digital assets.

The pipeline is far from empty. OpenAI and Anthropic have both been discussed as companies that could eventually command valuations approaching $1 trillion. While market expectations had pointed to IPOs as early as this year, however, growing investor unease over AI valuations and a cooling in semiconductor shares could delay those listings until 2027. Even so, another wave of AI mega offerings would likely continue drawing liquidity away from crypto.