Apple expected to invest in Arm ahead of possible September IPO

SoftBank has been eyeing an IPO for chip design unit Arm for quite some time, but it now seems that the initial public offering will be happening in the fall. As part of that IPO, Apple and other major chip firms may want a piece of the action.

According to sources of Nikkei, SoftBank plans to float Arm on Nasdaq in September, with expectations that the deal could be worth more than $60 billion. SoftBank will make the IPO official with an application to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission later in August, followed by gaining approval from Nasdaq itself.

Currently, SoftBank Group controls approximately 75% of Arm shares, with the remaining 25% held by the SoftBank Vision Fund, with the latter intending to sell 10% to 15% of its shares on the market.

As part of the IPO, Arm is apparently hoping major chip producers will become medium to long-term shareholders, owning a few percent of the stock. This list is said to include Apple, Samsung Electronics, Nvidia, and Intel.

While purchasing the shares could be viewed as a prudent investment, the chip-maker holdings should help stabilize the stock price at the time of its listing. Owning some shares could also give the companies a little more say over how Arm's management controls the company and its circuit designs.