US Nvidia's Acquisition of ARM Ultimately Falls Through

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] The acquisition of the British semiconductor company ARM by the U.S. semiconductor firm Nvidia has been finally canceled. This is due to concerns from regulatory authorities in the U.S., the U.K., and the European Union (EU) about the serious impact it could have on the global semiconductor industry.

On the 7th (local time), major foreign media outlets, citing three sources, reported that "SoftBank's plan to sell ARM to Nvidia for $66 billion (approximately 80 trillion KRW) has fallen through."

Nvidia had agreed to acquire ARM from Japan's SoftBank in September 2020, but the acquisition required approval from competition authorities in the U.S., the U.K., and the EU to be finalized. However, in December last year, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit opposing Nvidia's acquisition of ARM, stating that it could hinder innovation and competition.

The U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) also expressed "serious concerns from a competition perspective" about the acquisition in July last year, and the European Union (EU) Commission took a cautious stance, saying it was "closely examining whether ARM's intellectual property rights would be infringed by this acquisition."

Following the cancellation of the sale, SoftBank will receive a penalty fee of up to $1.25 billion (approximately 1.7 trillion KRW) from Nvidia. Foreign media reported that "SoftBank is preparing to take ARM public through an initial public offering (IPO) by the end of this year."

As a result of this failure, Simon Segars, the current CEO of ARM, is expected to step down. Sources explained, "There will likely be major changes, including Rene Haas, head of the ARM IP Group, becoming the next CEO."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.