Fair Trade Commission Initiates Merger Review of Synopsis and Ansys

Review of Competition Restrictions in the Semiconductor Design and Analysis Market

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Synopsis, which acquired Ansys, has filed a merger notification with the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC), marking the start of the formal review process.

The KFTC announced on the 12th that it has received the merger notification related to Synopsis's acquisition of Ansys shares (approximately $35 billion, 45.9 trillion KRW).

Synopsis, headquartered in the United States, is a company that develops software used for semiconductor design, while Ansys is a leading company in the simulation software sector.

The KFTC will examine whether the software supplied by Synopsis and Ansys are in a competitive or complementary relationship to determine whether this merger is a horizontal or conglomerate merger.

The KFTC stated, "We plan to review whether this merger could exclude competitors or hinder innovation by obstructing software interoperability in the semiconductor chip design and analysis market, according to the standards and procedures set forth in the Fair Trade Act."

During the review process, the KFTC will closely cooperate with overseas competition authorities and also gather opinions from domestic and international competitors and stakeholders. The merger review period is 30 days from the date of notification and can be extended up to 90 days if necessary.

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