The Nasdaq Stock Market has welcomed British semiconductor designer Arm Holding back to the fold after delisting seven years ago through a take-private deal with SoftBank.
Arm’s per-share offering of $51 gives the company, whose technology is found in virtually every smartphone in the word, a valuation of $54.5 billion.
This makes it the largest US-based IPO since electric vehicle maker Rivian went public in November 2021.
“We are elated to welcome Arm back on Nasdaq,” said Karen Snow, Nasdaq’s global head of listings. “As a company that is constantly questioning how to forge a better tomorrow, Arm aligns perfectly with our mission, and we could not be more excited to see what Arm has on the horizon.”
Whether the value is justified is up for debate, though the parent company, Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, stands to gain a handsome $4 billion-plus paycheck regardless.
Fellow chipmaker Nvidia signed up as a cornerstone investor in the IPO, alongside Arm’s blue-chip clients Apple, Alphabet and AMD.
Arm shares will be available to retail investors though online trading platform and brokerage accounts in the UK, though liquidity is expected to be restricted.
SoftBank has decided to retain 90.6% of Arm, while cornerstone investors have commanded the lion’s share of publicly traded shares.
Aty the time of writing, UK trading platforms checked by Proactive Investors, including Capital.com and 121Trading, were yet to offer Arm shares.
AJ Bell noted that as a US listing, it could take a number of days before going live on mainstream investment platforms.