Nvidia, Mellanox get Chinese nod, paving way for $6.9 billion deal

All regulatory requirements needed for closing the deal for acquisition of Israeli company are now at hand, US chipmaker says; deal completion estimated for April 27

Shoshanna Solomon was The Times of Israel's Startups and Business reporter

Eyal Waldman, left, founder and CEO of Mellanox, and Jensen Huang, the founder and CEO of Nvidia Corp., at a press conference in Yokne'am, Israel, on March 25, 2019 (Shoshanna Solomon/Times of Israel)
Eyal Waldman, left, founder and CEO of Mellanox, and Jensen Huang, the founder and CEO of Nvidia Corp., at a press conference in Yokne'am, Israel, on March 25, 2019 (Shoshanna Solomon/Times of Israel)

US gaming and computer graphics giant Nvidia Corp. has received approval from the Chinese antitrust authorities for its acquisition of Israeli chip maker Mellanox Technologies Ltd., paving the way for the completion of the deal.

The company said in March last year it will acquire Mellanox for $6.9 billion in a bid to help the US firm speed up the flow of information to and from data centers and boost its profit and cash flow.

The Chinese nod follows antitrust approval from the European Commission and Mexico and the expiration of the waiting period required under US antitrust laws. “With the exception of the remaining customary closing conditions, all conditions to the deal’s closing have been satisfied,” Nvidia said on April 16.

Closing of the acquisition is expected to occur on or about April 27, the company said.

China’s approval was necessary as both firms generate significant revenues from China, the biggest market for semiconductors. In addition, there were concerns that US-China trade tensions could jeopardize the deal.

Mellanox, with headquarters in Yokne’am, Israel, and Sunnyvale, California, is a maker of high-speed servers and storage switching solutions. The products developed by the firm, a pioneer in InfiniBand and Ethernet technologies, are used in supercomputers globally.

Most Popular
read more: