Broadcom has confirmed reports from last night that it has secured “up to” $100 billion in debt funding to cover its proposed acquisition of Qualcomm.
Over the months-long saga, Qualcomm has reject previous takeover offers from the rival chip company, and after Broadcom submitted a revised $121 billion bid last week — consisting of cash and stock — Qualcomm once again rejected the deal. However, Broadcom is now engaging in hostile takeover tactics as it seeks to replace Qualcomm board members with its own nominees at a shareholders meeting in early March.
Broadcom revealed that it has signed “committed financing agreements” to fund the $121 billion transaction, though Qualcomm argues that this significantly undervalues the company and that the deal would likely face significant regulatory hurdles.
Nonetheless, Broadcom said that it has secured a group of 12 financial bodies to provide the credit it needs to fund the acquisition. These include Citigroup, BofA Merrill Lynch, J.P. Morgan, Mizuho, MUFG, SMBC, Wells Fargo, Scotiabank, BMO Capital Markets, RBC Capital Markets, Morgan Stanley, and Deutsche Bank AG affiliates. Private equity firms KKR, CVC, and Silver Lake have also agreed to provide a $6 billion convertible note to fund the cost of the transaction and serve up working capital for the post-acquisition phase, which will include “restructuring activities,” the company said in a press release.
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As previously reported, the value of the transaction equates to $60 per share in cash, with an additional stock component taking the total value to $82 per share — a big increase on the original offer of $70.
There could be many twists still ahead of the anticipated shareholder vote next month, however, reports indicate that the two companies are meeting for the first time to discuss the acquisition offer later this week.
