SoftBank Group Corp. has tapped some of Arm Ltd.’s biggest clients as strategic investors in the chip company’s initial public offering, including Apple Inc , Nvidia Corp , Intel Corp and Samsung Electronics Co , according to people familiar with the matter. Condition.
investors also include AMDCadence Design Systems Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Synopsys Inc., among others, said the people, who asked not to be identified because details have not been released. SoftBank has been in discussions with Arm customers and partners for months, but those plans are only now being finalized. However, details could change as the company moves closer to an initial public offering (IPO), with an investor roadshow expected next week.
Investors will put in between $25 million and $100 million, the people said.
Backing from some of the biggest names in the tech industry will help drive the offering, which is expected to raise between $5 billion and $7 billion. SoftBank, which acquired Arm in 2016, had previously targeted a valuation of $60 billion to $70 billion for its chip business, but the figure could be between $50 billion and $60 billion, according to Bloomberg.
The offering could be at the lower end of that range, Reuters reported on Saturday. According to Reuters, SoftBank will seek funds of $47 to $51 per share in the IPO, valuing Arm at between $50 billion and $54 billion.
Representatives for AMD, Arm, Google, Nvidia and Synopsys declined to comment. Apple, Cadence, Intel and Samsung did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
SoftBank is capitalizing on investor interest in the chip industry, which benefits from spending on artificial intelligence equipment. The Philadelphia Stock Exchange Semiconductor Index has rallied this year, far outperforming the S&P 500 and other major indexes.
Arm provides chip designs and licenses technologies that are an integral part of the more than 1 billion smartphones sold each year. In recent years, it has tried to expand into new areas, including computers used in data centers, seeking to be part of pricier electronic components.
Arm is considering pricing its shares on Sept. 13, with the shares set to start trading the next day, Bloomberg reported earlier this week. A roadshow promoting the product is expected to take place Monday after the U.S. Labor Day holiday.
Arm initially planned to raise $8 billion to $10 billion, but that target was lowered after owner SoftBank decided to take a larger stake in the company — a move that involved buying the Vision Fund’s stake in the chip designer. The deal values the chip company at more than $64 billion.
Arm’s successful listing is a boon for SoftBank Chief Executive Masayoshi Son, whose Vision Fund lost a record $30 billion last year. It could also spur dozens of companies to pursue plans for initial public offerings of their own. Online grocery delivery company Instacart Inc., marketing and data automation provider Klaviyo and shoemaker Birkenstock are all developing products of their own.
According to Bloomberg, Masayoshi Son does not want to give up more than 10% of the company’s shares at present.
Cambridge, England-based Arm has assembled a long list of underwriters for the IPO, reflecting both the company’s global reach and banks’ eagerness to get in on big deals in a slow listing market. Barclays, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Mizuho Financial Group are the lead investors in the offering.
— With assistance from Mark Gurman, Davey Alba and Ellie Harmsworth
Svlook
