British microchip maker Arm has registered with U.S. regulators to hold what could be this year’s biggest initial public offering (IPO).
Multiple media reports say that Arm plans to list shares on the Nasdaq exchange, seeking to raise between $8 billion U.S. and $10 billion U.S. The exact date for the IPO has not been set.
The Arm IPO is welcomed news for an IPO market that has been in a funk for more than a year due to adverse stock market conditions.
U.S. IPOs, excluding listings of special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), are down about 22% to a total of just $2.35 billion U.S. this year, according to Dealogic.
However, there are indications that the IPO market is starting to improve. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is preparing to list its consumer health business Kenvue in New York later in May, hoping to raise $3.5 billion U.S.
Japanese holding company SoftBank, which owns Arm, has been planning an IPO of the microchip company since a deal to sell it to rival chip designer Nvidia (NVDA) for $40 billion U.S. collapsed last year after antitrust regulators raised concerns.
The IPO of Arm has caused controversy after it was announced that the share listing would take place in the U.S. rather than in the United Kingdom where Arm is based.
Investments banks Goldman Sachs (GS) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM) are leading the share listing of Arm.
