Japanese technology investment giant SoftBank said it is buying a $ 2BN (£ 1.5BN) stake in the US computer chip manufacturer.
A few hours after the new reports, it was announced that the Trump administration was negotiating to take a stake of about 10% in Intel by converting the government’s grants into shares.
Potential deal, which was first reported last week, aims to help Intel to create a major manufacturing center in Ohio. At that time, a spokesman for the White House told the BBC that the report should be “considered as speculation” until officially announced.
The BBC has approached the White House and Intel for comments.
Under the deal declared on Monday, SoftBank will pay $ 23 per share in Intel.
The two companies said, “Both Intel and SoftBank deepen their commitment to invest in advanced technology and semiconductor innovation in the United States as investment.” A joint detail,
Last week, US President Donald Trump and his cabinet members met Intel’s Chief Executive Lip-Bow Tan.
A few days after the meeting, Trump called Shri Tan to resign, accusing him of being “highly disputed” due to his first relations of China.
The US chip industry is under intensive investigation by the White House.
Some analysts have described Intel’s possible deal with the US government as a lifeline for the firm.
Intel is one of the few American firms capable of building a high -end semiconductor on a scale.
But globally, it has lost to rival chip manufacturers such as Samsung and TSMC.
On Thursday, the company refused to comment on the reported discussions and stated that it was deeply committed to supporting the efforts of President Trump to strengthen manufacturing and technology in the US “.
Indian University political scientist Sarah Baurel Denzman said that such an agreement would mark a “major growth”, which is an attempt by the Trump administration to reopen the role of the US government in the private sector.
But the potential step sets up an “examples” because it questions whether companies can be pushed to follow the political agenda, they said.
It also indicates that Intel indicates Washington’s determination to succeed and protect the supply chain for computer chips, said Dan Sheehan from Telos Wealth Advisors.
,[The Government’s] The agenda is clear: accelerate domestic production, reduce dependence on Asia, and the position of Intel at the center of the AI and the national security scenario, ”he said.
He said that Softbank’s investment is “clear vote of faith” in Intel’s turnout.
Last week, Nvidia and AMD agreed to pay 15% of their Chinese revenue to the US government as part of an unprecedented deal to secure export license to China.
