SoftBank acquires 25% ARM stake from Vision Fund

SoftBank Group has acquired the 25% stake in ARM from Vision Fund, in a deal that values the chip designer at just over $64bn.

The transaction now sees SoftBank own all of the Cambridge-based chip designer, as it prepares an initial public offering (IPO) of ARM shares on the Nasdaq market and gives an indication of the price range that SoftBank may be looking to secure for the firm.

SoftBank is reported to have been in talks to list ARM at around $60-70bn, after the Japanese company bought the firm for £23.4bn in 2016 and went on to taking it private for $32bn in 2016.

The Japanese company then sold a 25% stake to Vision Fund 1 for $8bn in 2017. The buyout takes away a potential complication for ARM’s IPO, with the fund having to cash out its stake over time following the listing, and SoftBank indicating that it plans to remain a long-term investor.

Further reports have also stated that SoftBank plans to sell only about 10% of the company in the IPO, which may result in a valuation of $8-10bn less than previously estimated.

More details about the IPO are expected later this year once SoftBank makes a so-called F-1 document public, which discloses information such as ARM’s financials and operations, but not the IPO pricing or the amount the firm is looking to raise.

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