NVIDIA Says Arm Acquisition is Likely Delayed

NVIDIA has admitted that antitrust scrutiny by regulators around the world will likely delay its planned acquisition of Arm.

“Our discussions with regulators are taking longer than initially thought, so it’s pushing out the timetable,” NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang said in an interview with the Financial Times. “But we’re confident in the deal, we’re confident regulators should recognize the benefits of the acquisition.”

NVIDIA announced that it planned to acquire Arm, which designs the chipsets underlying most of the world’s computing devices, in September 2020 for $21.5 billion in stock and $12 billion in cash, along with other financial incentives to Arm’s current parent company, Softbank, and to Arm employees. But the deal is opposed by numerous industry firms, including Google, Microsoft, and Qualcomm. And antitrust regulators from around the world have voiced their concerns as well, including those from the UK, where Arm is located.

But China appears to be the latest stumbling block. According to the Financial Times article, NVIDIA didn’t seek regulatory approval for the acquisition there until June, and that investigation could take up to 18 months. NVIDIA originally hoped to complete the acquisition by March 2021.

News of the delay comes as NVIDIA reports one of its best-ever quarters, earning a net income of $2.4 billion on record revenues of $6.5 billion in the period ending August 1, 2021. Those revenues were up an incredible 68 percent year-over-year.