SK Hynix Options Debut With 150,000 Contracts as 20% Stock Surge Fails to Spark Bullish Frenzy
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Jul 14
SK Hynix Options Debut With 150,000 Contracts as 20% Stock Surge Fails to Spark Bullish Frenzy
3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Jul 14
Summary
About 150,000 SK Hynix option contracts traded by midday Tuesday, a muted debut for a stock that had jumped more than 20% the same day.
Cboe LiveVol data showed calls outnumbered puts, but the most popular directional trade was call selling, and the seven biggest trades by volume were all bearish.
One trader appeared to sell more than 2,200 near-the-money July 17 180-strike calls for about $9 each, collecting roughly $2 million in premium.
Volume topped the 110,000 contracts in SMH and roughly doubled Sandisk or Marvell, but trailed DRAM and Micron at about 380,000 and sat far below Nvidia's 2.3 million.
Nearly a dozen leveraged single-stock ETFs tied to SK Hynix also started trading Tuesday, potentially siphoning speculative demand ahead of weekly options listings.
As leveraged ETFs emerge, are retail investors being lured into an overhyped AI memory bet?
Is SK Hynix’s record AI boom threatened by new price-fixing allegations?
Has the AI revolution permanently ended the historic boom-bust cycle for memory chip giants?
SK Hynix’s $26.5 Billion Nasdaq Debut: Options Surge, AI Memory Dominance, and Regulatory Risks
Overview
SK Hynix made a major entrance to U.S. markets in July 2026, first with a record-setting Nasdaq debut and then with the launch of options trading. This expansion quickly boosted global trading activity and attracted strong interest from both institutional and retail investors. GraniteShares responded by introducing leveraged ETFs tied to SK Hynix, intensifying competition as more issuers filed to launch similar products. The surge in trading instruments, combined with SK Hynix’s key role in the AI supply chain, has increased market volatility and created new opportunities for traders, while also highlighting the importance of careful risk management.