Apple & Bain complete $18B acquisition of Toshiba memory chip unit

The purchase of beleaguered Toshiba's memory group, long in limbo, is now complete, with Apple joining Bain, Dell, Seagate, and others to seal the deal.

The deal's completion, reported by Reuters, puts a manufacturer of NAND flash memory used in Apple devices in new hands. The consortium, led by Bain Capital, also includes SK Hynix, Dell Technologies, Seagate Technology and Kingston Technology; Toshiba will retain 40 percent of the unit.

The Chinese government approved the deal last month, clearing the final major hurdle.

Toshiba sold the unit in order to stave off crisis following the failure of its Westinghouse subsidiary; other bidders included longtime Apple partner Foxconn as well as Western Digital. At one point in mid-2017, Apple and Dell were part of a consortium with Foxconn in a bid for the business, but that group lost out to Bain.

It's not known how much Apple has invested, although reports last fall put the figure at as high as $3 billion.

The purchase will give Apple readier access to NAND chips, while also continuing to diversify its supply chain, as it has already been doing with both cameras and screens for its 2018 iPhone line.

17 Comments

SpamSandwich 19 Years · 32917 comments

About 6 years ago

I dunno... if Apple sees owning part of a memory chip manufacturer as a beneficial arrangement, why the hell are they not buying large stakes, if not controlling stakes, in CPU companies?

fox.kenji 6 Years · 13 comments

“The Chinese government approved the deal last month, clearing the final major hurdle. “

What business is it of the Chinese to have a say of someone else’s acquisitions? They don’t own Toshiba, that’s a Japanese company. They don’t own Dell, Apple, Western Digital, nor the oher company mentioned (Korean owned), etc.

It should be enough if the Japanese, American, and Korean governments approve of the sale/acquisition.

wonkothesane 12 Years · 1738 comments

Somehow funny, how a company selling some of the most wanted components can enter such troubles.

fox.kenji said:

“The Chinese government approved the deal last month, clearing the final major hurdle. “

What business is it of the Chinese to have a say of someone else’s acquisitions? They don’t own Toshiba, that’s a Japanese company. They don’t own Dell, Apple, Western Digital, nor the oher company mentioned (Korean owned), etc.

It should be enough if the Japanese, American, and Korean governments approve of the sale/acquisition.

I believe it’s because Toshiba had to sell part or all of the company and China or a Chinese group bought it.

Related?: https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1322434

ronn 20 Years · 688 comments

fox.kenji said:

“The Chinese government approved the deal last month, clearing the final major hurdle. “

What business is it of the Chinese to have a say of someone else’s acquisitions? They don’t own Toshiba, that’s a Japanese company. They don’t own Dell, Apple, Western Digital, nor the oher company mentioned (Korean owned), etc.

It should be enough if the Japanese, American, and Korean governments approve of the sale/acquisition.

Just like the governments in Japan, the U.S. and South Korea, the Chinese regulators had to approve the sale to make sure competition isn't stifled, and that the sale isn't against national interests. Toshiba could always pull out of China, but I don't think they'd be that dense.