UK Government To Conduct In-depth Investigation Into NVIDIA Acquisition Of ARM

JAKARTA - British officials plan to carry out an in-depth investigation into Nvidia Corp's acquisition of chipmaker ARM, which they claim is a national security issue.

The acquisition, which is valued at US$40 billion or equivalent to Rp568 trillion, raises suspicions about antitrust and national security issues.

Accordingly, UK Digital and Culture Secretary, Nadine Dorries, is expected to instruct the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) to conduct a phase two investigation of the deal next week.

The second phase of the investigation will reportedly last about six months. This investigation doesn't necessarily mean doom for NVIDIA's acquisition. Still, it would suggest that the government has some doubts, and NVIDIA may have to make some sacrifices.

The company will not get UK approval until 2022 at the earliest, and will still have to wait for other regulators before finalizing the merger.

Speaking to Engadget on Monday, November 15, a spokesperson for NVIDIA said it would, "continue to work with the UK government to address the issue, and possibly phase two will show in detail how the deal will go," he said.

The US company agreed to buy ARM from Japan's Softbank in September 2020, but sparked a backlash from politicians, rivals and customers. ARM technology is used by competing chipmakers, such as Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics and Apple to manufacture their own processors.