PANEL MAKERS
AUO shares rise
AU Optronics Corp (AUO, 友達光電) shares yesterday gained 5.65 percent to reach NT$9.53 amid speculation that Apple Inc plans to help finance the construction of an LCD production line with the nation’s No. 2 LCD-panel maker. AUO declined to comment on the reports, which said AUO had a good chance to become the third active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) screen supplier to the US-based consumer electronics giant after South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co and LG Display Co.
STOCKS
TWSE unveils new rule
The Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) announced that a new mechanism to suspend transactions of an individual stock is to be launched on Friday. The TWSE said that listed or over-the-counter enterprises can apply to suspend trading if they take action or are put in a situation that could greatly affect shareholders’ interests. Those actions include seriously cutting production or halting operations, filing for bankruptcy or restructuring, engaging in a merger, spinoff, acquisition or share swap, or developing a new product or technology. Companies can also apply to suspend trading of shares if they cannot fully explain media reports that affect their share price, TWSE said. If a company needs to suspend trading, but does not apply to do so, the TWSE can take the initiative to suspend the trading of that stock, it added. The TWSE said that due to the short stock trading hours per day in Taiwan, suspensions would be based on one trading session, with no mid-session actions allowed.
EMPLOYMENT
Digital Domain to seek staff
Digital Domain, a US visual effects and digital production company, on Monday announced that it is to launch a recruitment drive in Taiwan. Because of a growing need for talent spurred by Digital Domain’s increased emphasis on virtual reality (VR), the company is to hire 20 to 50 people in the first phase of the plan, with a focus on creative personnel, company CEO Daniel Seah (謝安) said. Currently, the company’s branch office in Taiwan has 15 people, he said. Besides introducing a VR version of Here comes Kangsi, a popular talk show, in cooperation with CtiTV, there is to be further cooperation with the TV station, he said.
CRIME
Ko Wen-chang starts term
WK Technology Fund (普訊創業投資) chairman Ko Wen-chang (柯文昌) yesterday began a nine-year prison sentence for insider trading. He was taken to Taipei Prison in Taoyuan after reporting to the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. In a statement issued yesterday, Ko said he never engaged in insider trading and he expressed gratitude for the support of the business sector and his friends. He said he still has faith in the judicial system and believes his name could be cleared. Before his departure for the prison, he called on his staff “get down to good work” and “stay until I get out.” The Supreme Court on Dec. 18 rejected an appeal by Ko, known as the godfather of venture capital in Taiwan, and upheld a nine-year sentence and a NT$100 million (US$2.97 million) fine against him for insider trading. The nine-year sentence was the heaviest ever meted out in Taiwan for an insider trading conviction. In 2006, Ko — then a director of Green Point Enterprise Co (綠點科技) — learned that Jabil Circuit of the US had issued a non-binding letter of intent to buy Green Point and he invested heavily in the company’s shares over several sessions, according to the court’s ruling.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
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