South Korea’s wealthiest investors are increasingly tying their fortunes to the global artificial intelligence boom, betting heavily on semiconductor companies in both South Korea and the United States as demand for AI infrastructure accelerates.
An analysis released by Mirae Asset Securities, one of South Korea’s largest brokerage and wealth management firms, found that clients with more than $6.5 million in assets overwhelmingly favored technology and mobility stocks, particularly companies positioned to benefit from the rapid expansion of AI.
The study examined the portfolios of approximately 1,400 ultra-high-net-worth clients as of the end of May. Among South Korean equities, the most widely held stocks were Hyundai Motor, the country’s largest automaker; SK Hynix, a leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory chips used in AI servers; Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest memory chip and smartphone manufacturer; Hanmi Semiconductor, a maker of advanced semiconductor packaging equipment; and electrical equipment manufacturer Sanil Electric.
The investment preferences of South Korea’s richest investors closely mirrored trends seen in global markets. U.S. semiconductor giant Broadcom was the most widely held foreign stock, followed by Nvidia, Micron Technology and Tesla.
Mirae Asset said many wealthy investors had identified long-term opportunities early in sectors such as AI semiconductors, data centers and next-generation mobility, allowing them to capture substantial gains as AI spending surged worldwide.
Those early investments have produced outsized returns. According to the brokerage, SK Hynix generated an average return of 1,241.6% among ultra-wealthy clients between December 2024 and May 2026. Shares of U.S. memory chipmaker Micron Technology returned an average of 1,058%, while Samsung Electronics and Sanil Electric delivered gains of 495.9% and 260.1%, respectively.
The strong market performance has also fueled rapid growth in South Korea’s affluent investor base. Mirae Asset said the number of clients with more than $2 million in assets rose to more than 9,500 in May from around 3,000 a year earlier. The number of clients holding more than $6.5 million in assets climbed from roughly 600 to 1,400 over the same period.
The data underscore how South Korea’s wealthy investors are increasingly investing alongside global peers, building portfolios centered on the companies supplying the chips and infrastructure powering the AI race.
