Nvidia to seek EU approval for $ 54 billion arms deal – sources

BRUSSELS / BENGALURU, Aug 27 (Reuters) – Nvidia (NVDA.O) will likely seek EU antitrust approval for its $ 54 billion takeover of UK chip designer Arm early next month, with regulators set to launch full-scale investigation after review, people familiar with the matter said.

The world’s largest graphics chip and AI maker announced the Arm deal last year, sparking an immediate backlash in the semiconductor industry.

Arm has long been a neutral player in licensing key intellectual property to customers who are otherwise intense rivals, including Qualcomm Inc (QCOM.O), Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) and Apple Inc (AAPL.O). ).

However, Nvidia said it has gained support from customers of Arm Broadcom (AVGO.O), MediaTek (2454.TW) and Marvell (MRVL.O), according to a presentation on its website.

A request for approval of the agreement from the European Commission will initiate a preliminary examination of 25 working days. Nvidia is unlikely to offer any concessions during this period, the sources said, which will then trigger a full-scale 90-working-day European investigation.

Sources previously told Reuters in June that Nvidia may not be able to meet the March 2022 deadline to complete its deal due to the reluctance of European regulators to consider the case before the summer recess. Read more

The Financial Times reported earlier that the European Union is set to launch a formal competition investigation in connection with the takeover slated for early next month.

Britain’s competition regulator said last week the deal could hurt competition and weaken rivals, and required a longer investigation. Read more

“This transaction will be beneficial to Arm, its licensees, the competition and the industry. We are working on the regulatory process and look forward to engaging with the European Commission to address their concerns.” said Nvidia.

Arm did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

Arm, currently owned by Japanese firm SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T), is a major player in global semiconductors, a fundamental industry for technologies ranging from artificial intelligence and quantum computing to 5G telecommunications networks. . Its designs power almost every smartphone and millions of other devices.

Reporting by Ann Maria Shibu, Bhargav Acharya and Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Emelia Sithole-Matarise

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