Qualcomm "Pursuing ARM Stake Acquisition... Also Willing to Join Consortium"

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U.S. mobile communication chip company Qualcomm has expressed its intention to pursue the acquisition of shares in the UK semiconductor design specialist ARM. ARM holds numerous core technologies for designing AP (application processor) semiconductors developed and sold by Samsung Electronics, Apple, Qualcomm, and others.

On the 31st (local time), according to major foreign media, Cristiano Amon, CEO of Qualcomm, said in an interview with the Financial Times (FT) that he is interested in joint investment with other competitors during ARM's initial public offering (IPO).

CEO Amon added that if the scale is sufficiently large, he is also willing to participate in a consortium to acquire ARM.

He explained that he has not discussed this plan with SoftBank, ARM's major shareholder.

SoftBank attempted to sell ARM to U.S. semiconductor company Nvidia in September 2020, but the deal was blocked by regulatory authorities. Since then, Masayoshi Son, chairman of SoftBank, has been pushing for ARM's listing on the U.S. Nasdaq stock exchange.

As SK Hynix and others are reportedly reviewing forming a consortium to acquire ARM, Qualcomm's entry into the acquisition battle draws attention to how alliances among related companies will be formed in the future.

Earlier, Park Jung-ho, vice chairman of SK Hynix, said at a meeting with reporters after the regular shareholders' meeting on March 30 this year, "We are reviewing the option of acquiring ARM as a consortium with strategic investors."

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