$17.2 billion! Qualcomm's major chip acquisition
Qualcomm announced the acquisition of UK semiconductor company Alphawave for approximately $2.4 billion, expected to be completed in 2026. After the acquisition, Alphawave will be delisted and privatized. Alphawave focuses on high-speed connectivity chip design, with expected revenue exceeding $500 million in 2024. The acquisition offer is less than half of its market value at the time of listing, with the stock price rising by 23%. Shareholders can choose to accept the offer in cash or Qualcomm stock, with cash at $2.48 per share, a premium of nearly 96%
On June 9, Xindongxi reported that today, American chip giant Qualcomm announced it has agreed to acquire British semiconductor listed company Alphawave for approximately $2.4 billion (about 17.2 billion RMB). The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2026. Upon completion of the acquisition, Alphawave will be delisted and operate privately under the Qualcomm Group.
Alphawave is a company that designs authorized high-speed connection chips, founded in Canada in 2017. Its products cover areas such as data centers, artificial intelligence (AI), 5G wireless infrastructure, data networks, autonomous driving, and solid-state storage, with revenues exceeding $500 million in 2024. The company has about 1,000 employees in Canada, India, the United States, and Israel.
In 2021, this semiconductor company went public in London, UK, with a market value reaching £3.1 billion at that time. Qualcomm's current offer is less than half of Alphawave's market value when it was first listed. Following today's acquisition announcement, Alphawave's stock price rose 23% in early trading on Monday.
Qualcomm first announced in April this year that it was considering acquiring Alphawave. Qualcomm President and CEO Cristiano Amon stated that both companies share a common goal of building advanced technological solutions and achieving higher levels of interconnected computing performance in a wide range of high-growth areas, including data center infrastructure.
Alphawave CEO Tony Pialis believes this transaction will position Alphawave favorably to expand its product range, reach a broader customer base, and enhance its technological capabilities.
Alphawave shareholders can choose to accept the offer in cash or Qualcomm stock. According to the acquisition terms, accepting shareholders will be entitled to receive $2.48 in cash per share, representing a nearly 96% premium over the closing price before Qualcomm disclosed its acquisition intentions.
Shareholders can also choose to exchange each share of Alphawave stock for 0.01662 shares of new Qualcomm stock. Each share of Alphawave stock can be exchanged for 0.00964 shares of new "Series A Qualcomm Exchangeable Securities" and 0.00698 shares of new "Series B Qualcomm Exchangeable Securities." These exchangeable securities will not be listed or transferable during a four-year lock-up period and will gradually convert into Qualcomm stock over 16 quarterly issuance dates.
As technology giants are investing hundreds of billions of dollars to build AI infrastructure, this transaction is expected to enhance Qualcomm's product strength in the data center and 5G network sectors by combining Alphawave's connectivity and computing technology with Qualcomm's product matrix, supporting Qualcomm's ambitions in the AI field.
Author of this article: ZeR0, Source: Xinxidongxi, Original title: "17.2 Billion! Qualcomm's Major Chip Acquisition"
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