SoftBank ARM to Raise 10 Trillion Won in US-Only IPO

ARM, a UK semiconductor design company and subsidiary of Japan's SoftBank, which is pursuing a sole listing on the US stock market, has selected lead underwriters and officially begun the listing process. ARM is expected to raise at least $8 billion (approximately 10.38 trillion KRW) through this listing.

On the 5th (local time), major foreign media outlets reported, citing sources, that SoftBank and ARM have selected Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Barclays, and Mizuho Financial Group as joint lead underwriters and have started discussions on the upcoming schedule, including the filing for listing review.

It was reported that ARM plans to submit documents for its initial public offering (IPO) confidentially by the end of next month. The listing is expected to take place within this year, with the exact timing to be determined based on market conditions, according to sources.

Previously, SoftBank and ARM, who had considered a simultaneous listing on both the US and UK stock markets, officially announced through a recent statement that they will pursue a sole listing in the US. On the 2nd, Rene Haas, ARM’s CEO, stated in a release, "We have decided that pursuing a listing solely in the US this year is the best path for the company and its shareholders."

The sole US listing is said to strongly reflect the intentions of SoftBank Chairman Masayoshi Son. Chairman Son believes that the US stock market has a more solid investor base and is more favorable for achieving a higher company valuation compared to the UK market.

Headquartered in Cambridge, UK, ARM holds core technologies in semiconductor design that serve as the "brain" of IT devices such as PC central processing units (CPUs) and smartphone application processors (APs). SoftBank acquired ARM in 2016 for $32 billion (approximately 41.6 trillion KRW).

In September 2020, SoftBank attempted to sell ARM to US semiconductor company Nvidia for $40 billion, but the deal was blocked by regulatory authorities. Since then, there have been discussions about potential ARM acquisitions by Intel, Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix.

Chairman Son Jeong-ui.