SoftBank’s $6.5 Billion Deal for Chip Firm Ampere Wins FTC Nod

The US Federal Trade Commission has ended its review of SoftBank Group Corp.’s acquisition of semiconductor designer Ampere Computing LLC, removing an obstacle to the $6.5 billion deal.

The FTC granted what’s known as early termination to the companies, meaning it’s ending the review process, according to a notice on the agency’s website.

SoftBank’s all-cash transaction announced in March represents another step in billionaire founder Masayoshi Son’s push to add artificial intelligence infrastructure capabilities. Ampere makes server processors that are one of the main components of data center computers.

Representatives for Ampere and SoftBank declined to comment on the FTC’s decision dated Nov. 12. Bloomberg News reported in July that the FTC had opened an in-depth investigation of the transaction.

SoftBank is already the majority owner of Arm Holdings Plc, whose technology is used across the electronics industry and increasingly as the basis of server chips. Ampere is one of those customers that licenses Arm’s fundamental technology.

With its ownership in Arm, UK chip design unit Graphcore Ltd. and Ampere, SoftBank would hold key technologies in AI chipmaking, Son has said.

--With assistance from Ian King.

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Josh Sisco in San Francisco at jsisco6@bloomberg.net

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Sara Forden at sforden@bloomberg.net

Michael Hytha

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