Semiconductor industries have seen a significant shift in their business due to the ongoing pandemic and the effects of China and the US dispute. We have witnessed Nvidia acquiring ARM and AMD buying Xilinx, but recently Taiwan’s GlobalWafers Co. agreed to acquire German silicon wafer manufacturer Siltronic AG for about 3.75 billion euros.
The deal estimates the value of Siltronic’s shares at 125 euros. After both, the companies announced the news of the acquisition. Siltronic’s shares rose 1.2% to 127 euros in early trading on Thursday, whereas GlobalWafer’s shares fell as much as 8.8%.
According to sources, GlobalWafers has promised not to lay off the acquired company’s employees or close any Siltronic site in Germany before the end of 2024. The two companies currently have 20 factories in 10 countries, and Siltronic can help bolster GlobalWafers’ 5G power and Internet of Things. So the deal stands to help GlobalWafers develop a more advanced and compound-based semiconductor technology.
After completing the deal, the new combined company will be the world’s largest silicon wafer maker by revenue, with a market share of 32% to 35%. The deal is the largest ever by the Taiwanese wafer manufacturer is one of the biggest this year in the chip industry. The value shouldn’t come as a surprise because competition in the chip industry is heating up.
Not to mention that AMD is gaining its footing in the market and is slowly rising to take down intel. And companies like Apple, who were once significant wafer customer manufacturers, are now building their chips, leading in the market. As the semiconductor market struggles to stabilize post-pandemic, we can expect to see even more deals in the coming months.
