SK hynix Completes 40 Trillion Won Share Buyback Ahead of Schedule

South Korean chipmaker SK hynix Inc. completed its 40 trillion won share buyback Oct. 21, nearly a month early, setting up the country's largest planned cancellation of treasury shares.

The company began buying shares Aug. 20 on South Korea's main stock market. Its original schedule allowed purchases through Nov. 19, but the buying ended after roughly two months, leaving almost a month in the announced window.

The plan covered 24.07 million shares, equivalent to about 3.3% of SK hynix's issued stock. SK hynix committed to cancel all the shares acquired under the program once the purchases were complete. Buying shares and canceling them are separate steps; the cancellation remains planned.

Samsung Electronics completed a separate large buyback before SK hynix finished its purchases. The planned SK hynix share retirement would be the largest by a South Korean listed company. SK hynix's next step is to cancel the shares acquired through its program.