Epistar Corp (晶元光電), the nation's largest maker of chips that run light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in mobile phones, yesterday announced plans to acquire smaller rivals Epitech Technology Corp (元砷光電) and Highlink Technology Corp (連勇科技) in a share swap.
One Epistar share will be exchanged for 3.08 shares of Epitech Technology and 5.5 shares of Highlink Technology, according to a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.
The financial terms of the planned merger were not disclosed yesterday.
"The merger is going to complement product lines and help broaden our client base as the three companies have different customers," the statement said.
The move will integrate technical resources within the firms to pave the way for a world-class LED manufacturer whose total acquired and pending global patents will number 800, according to the statement.
The merger is scheduled to take effect on March 1 next year, and the new Epistar will have paid-in capital of NT$5.08 billion (US$154 million), the companies said.
Established in 1996, Epistar now has paid-in capital of NT$3.61 billion. The company posted sales of NT$2.96 billion in the first half of the year, with a gross margin of 28.32 percent. First-half net profit totaled NT$617 million, according to the company.
This planned deal is the latest consolidation among local LED chipmakers.
In August last year, Epistar acquired United Epitaxy Co (
That merger was aimed at outpacing its rivals in the local LED industry in terms of operation and production scale.
Shares of Epistar rose 3.77 percent to close at NT$110 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, while Epitech Technology remained unchanged at NT$35.50.
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