Qualcomm wants a stake in Arm if Nvidia takeover fails

Incoming CEO proposes an IPO investment as regulators continue to probe Nvidia's acquisition plans

Trade

Image: IDGNS

14 June 2021

US giant Qualcomm has said it’s ready to invest in Arm should Nvidia’s planned $40 billion takeover of the British chipmaker be blocked by regulators.

Incoming Qualcomm chief executive Cristiano Amon told The Telegraph that Qualcomm would be prepared to take a stake in Arm alongside other industry players.

Nvidia’s deal for Cambridge-based Arm is currently under investigation by the UK’s Competition & Markets Authority over concerns about how it will affect the wider industry. Similar concerns have also been raised in the US and Japan as well, with Arm currently under the ownership of Japanese investment group Softbank.

“If it moves out of Softbank and it goes into a process of becoming a publicly traded company, [with] a consortium of companies that invest, including many of its customers, I think those are great possibilities,” Amon told The Telegraph. “We will definitely be open to it, and we have had discussions with other companies that feel the same way.”

The other companies reportedly include the likes of Amazon and car manufacturer Tesla, though Nvidia has hit back strongly at these claims by suggesting an IPO would hamper Arm’s development.

Nvidia’s takeover of Arm has been under intense scrutiny from rival firms and regulators since it was signed last year. Tech giant including Google and Microsoft have raised concerns, suggesting it could harm the British firm’s independence and hamper competition, and the majority of UK-based IT experts believe that the government should intervene in the deal.

In the last week, Nvidia submitted applications to Chinese regulators to review the deal, with the Financial Times suggesting it could take up to 18 months for that to be processed. Other reports suggest Softbank has sought bank loans of around $7.5 billion with the fee tied to the sale of Arm.

© Dennis Publishing

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