SK hynix considers acquiring Arm amid increased antitrust scrutiny Korean chipmaker considering forming consortium with other companies
Translated by Ryu Ho-joung 공개 2022-04-01 10:29:31
이 기사는 2022년 04월 01일 08:06 thebell 에 표출된 기사입니다.
South Korean semiconductor manufacturer SK hynix may be the latest to attempt to acquire British chip design specialist Arm, owned by Japan’s SoftBank Group, as global regulators challenge more tech deals on antitrust grounds.SK hynix vice chairman Park Jung-ho said the chipmaker is exploring ways to invest in Arm in partnership with other companies in response to a reporter’s question after the company’s annual general meeting on Wednesday.
The remark comes after Park, who is also vice chairman of SK Square, mentioned that SK Group's investment holding company “is considering acquiring Arm” during its general meeting on Tuesday.
Arm is the world's leading semiconductor intellectual property company, counting global firms Apple, Google, Qualcomm and Samsung Electronics among its customers. This would make the UK firm an attractive acquisition target to many tech giants, including not only SK hynix but potentially Samsung Electronics, another South Korean chipmaker seeking to strengthen its non-memory chip business.
SK hynix’s potential attempt to buy Arm would most likely face steep regulatory hurdles, especially given Nvidia’s failure to acquire the chip designer. The US semiconductor giant in 2020 agreed to buy Arm for $40 billion from SoftBank, but called off the deal in February after regulators raised antitrust concerns.
Regulatory scrutiny over tech mergers has increased globally, with more deals blocked by regulators over antitrust and national security concerns. SK hynix is considering forming a consortium to acquire Arm, probably because that could ease antitrust problems.
Intel chief executive Pat Gelsinger also told Reuters in February that the US chipmaker would be interested in participating if a consortium emerges to own Arm.
Toshiba Memory deal
SK hynix previously joined a consortium to acquire Toshiba Memory, later renamed Kioxia Holdings. The consortium, led by US private equity firm Bain Capital, consisted of companies from the US, South Korea and Japan, including SK hynix, Hoya Corporation, Apple, Dell Technologies, Kingston Technology and Seagate Technology.
SK hynix poured 4 trillion won ($3.3 billion) into the deal, which comprised 2.7 trillion won invested in Bain Capital’s fund and 1.3 trillion won in convertible bonds issued by the memory chip unit of Toshiba.
The deal closed in June 2018 after receiving all required antitrust approvals. Because of the way the deal was structured, SK hynix may get capital gains from its investment while being unable to be involved in the management of Kioxia. Industry experts said at the time the deal was meaningful as it prevented the Japanese chipmaker from being acquired by US rivals such as Micron and Western Digital or Chinese semiconductor companies.
Arm supplies its chip technology to almost all the world's major tech companies. “In the (semiconductor) ecosystem, any attempt by any firm to take over Arm on its own would not be successful so we are exploring ways to acquire it together with partners,” Park said.
“That seems quite possible,” an industry insider said of Park’s remarks. “A potential deal for Arm could be structured in a way that SK hynix invests as a limited partner and buy partners’ holdings in the chip designer later through separate shareholder agreements.” (Reporting by Hye-ran Kim)
< 저작권자 ⓒ 자본시장 미디어 'thebell', 무단 전재, 재배포 및 AI학습 이용 금지 >
관련기사
best clicks
최신뉴스 in 전체기사
-
- '푸드테크에 진심' 롯데벤처스, 투자재원 확충 시동
- [thebell interview/비상하는 K-우주항공 스타트업]박동하 “코스모비로 우주와 인간 가까워지기를”
- [모태 2024 2차 정시출자]‘AC전용' 스포츠출발, 상상이비즈 '연속 GP' 도전
- '오스템임플란트 볼트온' MBK-UCK, 브라질 임플란트 3위 업체 인수
- '주주환원 강화' 케이카, 1분기 실적 주목
- 가보지 않은 길 'ARC' 셀비온-앱티스 맞손, 독성에 도전
- [여전사경영분석]BNK캐피탈, 순익 반등에도 수익성 제고 과제 여전히
- [은행경영분석]권재중 BNK금융 CFO 첫 성적표 'CET1 12%대' 진입
- 마이금융파트너, 신계약 성과에 2년째 매출 급증
- [여전사경영분석]문동권식 수익다변화 전략 적중…신한카드, 순익 회복 시동