Kioxia and Western Digital Merger Stops Due to SK Hynix Opposition

[AleksandarK]

According to sources close to Nikkei, the merger discussions between Western Digital and Kioxia has been terminated. Western Digital notified Kioxia about scrapping the possible transaction, citing the failure to obtain approval from SK Hynix, a significant shareholder of Kioxia, and disagreements over merger terms with Bain Capital, Kioxia's main shareholder. Western Digital and Kioxia, holding the fourth and second positions in the global NAND flash memory market, respectively, planned to join their NAND operations under one roof to create the world's largest maker of NAND memory and potentially enhance their competitive standing and profitability.

The merger was seen as a strategic move to rival Samsung's market dominance by leveraging the companies' combined resources and capabilities, and the plan was to happen as soon as the end of this month. However, the merger faced substantial opposition from SK Hynix, the world's third-largest NAND supplier with a 17.8% market share. Having invested more than $2.6 billion in a consortium led by Bain Capital that previously acquired Kioxia in 2018, SK Hynix expressed concerns that the proposed merger would adversely impact its market position and future collaboration opportunities with Kioxia. This opposition proved to be a pivotal obstacle, preventing the realization of the merger.



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[kondamin]

Good should have never come this far in the first place.

 

[mplayerMuPDF]

 

[trsttte]

womp womp

Good should have never come this far in the first place.

Meh, it's not like Kioxia and WD aren't pretty much joined at the hip, probably even with specific anti compete agreements in place. The overall situation is pretty sad but I don't think this merger being blocked will meaningfully change anything

 

[Wirko]

Meh, it's not like Kioxia and WD aren't pretty much joined at the hip, probably even with specific anti compete agreements in place. The overall situation is pretty sad but I don't think this merger being blocked will meaningfully change anything

Right. Toshiba, Kioxia and WD have never been separate or even competing businesses as far as flash/SSD is concerned. I don't see anything consequential, either good or bad, if the merger is blocked. There are Samsung, Micron, SK Hynix and SandiskToshibaKioxiaWD that make NAND chips, and there won't be any more, or fewer ... until the next merger.

Of course there's always the strategic issue of Japanese vs. American company and who you're allowed to sell to, but Japan will listen to the US secretary of trade in any event.

 

[mplayerMuPDF]

womp womp



Meh, it's not like Kioxia and WD aren't pretty much joined at the hip, probably even with specific anti compete agreements in place. The overall situation is pretty sad but I don't think this merger being blocked will meaningfully change anything

Yes, WD/SanDisk are using Kioxia's NAND already currently, but they are still independent. Kioxia designs and manufactures their own SSDs, in some cases (such as my XG6, although it was technically still branded Toshiba) even using custom controllers. If they were to merge, Kioxia could disappear completely or just become another WD brand. I would very much like to retain the option to buy a real Kioxia SSD that has little to nothing to do WD. Otherwise SK Hynix would become my only option aside from (often questionable) third party manufacturers using components from other companies.

 

[Chrispy_]

It's interesting that Hynix, a competitor of Kioxia, has a significant shareholder stake in Kioxia.

 

[Luisds]

Right. Toshiba, Kioxia and WD have never been separate or even competing businesses as far as flash/SSD is concerned. I don't see anything consequential, either good or bad, if the merger is blocked. There are Samsung, Micron, SK Hynix and SandiskToshibaKioxiaWD that make NAND chips, and there won't be any more, or fewer ... until the next merger.

Of course there's always the strategic issue of Japanese vs. American company and who you're allowed to sell to, but Japan will listen to the US secretary of trade in any event.

thanks Biden 46th U.S. President，we can use YMTC