According to a Reuters report, chipmaker Broadcom has confirmed that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has once again asked the company to provide additional information as part of its ongoing review of Broadcom's $103 billion hostile takeover bid for Qualcomm. This latest request signals that the antitrust scrutiny surrounding the deal is intensifying, and could mean further delays or conditions on the acquisition.
The FTC's involvement is part of the standard antitrust process under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act, which requires companies to notify the FTC and the Department of Justice before completing large mergers. Typically, most transactions proceed after an initial review. However, when the FTC requests more information a second time, it often indicates that the deal is complex or raises significant competition concerns.
Qualcomm had previously warned that the regulatory hurdles would be lengthy, especially given the size and nature of the proposed acquisition. Broadcom, on the other hand, has stated that the second request from the FTC is just a normal step in the regulatory process and that the deal is moving forward as expected.
Industry insiders suggest that the FTC's repeated inquiries are likely due to the massive scale and complexity of the transaction. While there's still hope that the deal could eventually be approved, the path ahead remains uncertain. Qualcomm has not commented on the latest developments, and the FTC has also declined to respond to media inquiries.
This week, Broadcom clarified that the FTC’s renewed focus on its customer relationships is unrelated to its wireless business or the Qualcomm acquisition. The company remains confident that it will complete the deal within 12 months, though Qualcomm believes the global regulatory process will take longer.
Meanwhile, another major deal involving Qualcomm has seen some progress. The European Union’s competition authority recently approved Qualcomm’s $38 billion acquisition of NXP Semiconductors. However, approval from China is still pending, with expectations that it may come within the next two weeks.
Despite this, the NXP acquisition is not without challenges. Some NXP shareholders have reportedly urged Qualcomm to increase its offer, adding another layer of uncertainty to the deal.
Under Broadcom’s proposal, the acquisition of Qualcomm would be structured as $60 in cash and $10 in Broadcom stock per share, totaling $103 billion. To pressure Qualcomm, Broadcom has nominated 11 of its own candidates to replace the current board members. Qualcomm shareholders are set to vote on these nominees at a shareholder meeting scheduled for March.
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