SK Hynix Stands Tall in the HBM Kingdom... 'Unsung Hero' Hanmi Semiconductor

Exclusive Large-Scale Orders for HBM TC Bonder
Targeting 1.2 Trillion KRW in Sales Next Year Based on Technical Expertise and Stable Production Capacity
Strengthening Shareholder-Friendly Policies to Share Growth Benefits

As SK Hynix is expected to maintain its dominance in the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) sector next year, interest is growing in the technological capabilities of Hanmi Semiconductor, the leading supplier of TC bonders for HBM production.

According to industry sources and DS Investment & Securities on the 14th, considering Hanmi Semiconductor’s exclusive large-scale orders for TC bonders used in HBM, it is anticipated that the company will continue to be the top supplier with the highest market share.

Lee Surim, a researcher at DS Investment & Securities, explained, "As of the fourth quarter this year, TC bonders for the largest client are being smoothly shipped in line with the supply schedule of the end users of AI accelerators."

She added, "The priority supply structure for TC bonders to the largest client will be maintained," and "Even assuming the largest client’s dual sourcing policy, orders from other clients are increasing, so annual sales of 1 trillion KRW can be achieved next year."

For mass production of HBM, quality, yield, and development period are crucial. Producing HBM requires highly refined technology. Since it also affects AI semiconductors packaged together with HBM, meeting yield and quality standards is known to be challenging.

Hanmi Semiconductor is demonstrating pride in its advanced technology and confidence in growth through treasury stock acquisitions. The company signed a trust contract with Samsung Securities yesterday for the acquisition of treasury stock worth 40 billion KRW.

Hanmi Semiconductor’s Vice Chairman Kwak Dong-shin stated, "Hanmi Semiconductor is the main supplier of TC bonders for HBM production for SK Hynix and US-based Micron Technology," adding, "Based on relentless effort and technological prowess, we maximize customer satisfaction and firmly maintain our position as the world’s number one in market share."

Over the past three years, Hanmi Semiconductor has canceled 1,926,120 shares of treasury stock worth 40 billion KRW. During the same period, the scale of treasury stock acquisitions reached 280 billion KRW.

Hanmi Semiconductor expects sales to reach 650 billion KRW this year, 1.2 trillion KRW in 2025, and 2 trillion KRW in 2026. Growth is expected to continue as the company develops equipment necessary for manufacturing high-performance semiconductors required in the AI era.

To produce TC bonders, Hanmi Semiconductor employs skilled artisans with over 30 years of field experience who conduct six rounds of inspections at each stage, including processing, assembly, wiring, and testing. TC bonders that pass a total of 1,000 inspection items are delivered to clients. The company can produce 264 TC bonders annually and is investing in capacity expansion to produce 420 units per year by next year.

Artisans at Hanmi Semiconductor also conduct engineer training. It takes about ten years of special training to be recognized as a professional engineer. Through perfect quality control and craftsmanship, Hanmi Semiconductor has been the only Korean company selected among the world’s top 10 equipment companies by TechInsights, a global semiconductor research firm, for three consecutive years from 2022 to 2024.

Hanmi Semiconductor’s client SK Hynix achieved its highest-ever quarterly performance in Q3 and maintains world-class competitiveness in the HBM sector. The "triangular alliance" of SK Hynix, US-based Nvidia, and Taiwan’s TSMC is generating powerful synergy effects in the AI era, dominating the global AI semiconductor market. SK Hynix plans to provide samples of the industry’s largest capacity and highest-tier ‘48-gigabyte (GB) 5th generation HBM (HBM3E) 16-stack’ to clients early next year. In the second half of next year, it will mass-produce HBM4 in cooperation with TSMC and subsequently release customized HBM4E, HBM5, HBM5E, and other 7th to 9th generation HBM products.

Hanmi Semiconductor, the supplier of TC bonders for HBM, is steadily supplying TC bonders in line with SK Hynix’s HBM development and mass production schedule. Since SK Hynix consistently supplies world-class HBM, the conditions for supplying related equipment are stringent. A complex process for completeness evaluation is required, and a long verification procedure is necessary before entering final mass production. The importance of TC bonders, essential process equipment for mass-producing demanding HBM, inevitably increases.