PC brand Acer Inc (宏碁) yesterday said that it is planning to acquire a stake in touch controller designer FocalTech Systems Co (敦泰電子) at a cost of up to NT$1.5 billion (US$53.18 million).
In a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange, Acer said that the NT$1.5 billion would be a long-term investment in FocalTech and the shares would be acquired by means of block trading, under which large numbers of equities are traded at an arranged price between two parties.
Acer plans to purchase 7.54 million FocalTech shares at NT$199 per share, the filing said.
Photo: Vanessa Cho, Taipei Times
PARTNERSHIP ENDS
Acer’s announcement came after fingerprint sensor designer Egis Technology Inc (神盾) last week announced that it was terminating its partnership with FocalTech.
Egis said that it planned to dispose of its 33.97 million shares in FocalTech, a 16.14 percent stake, and that its board of directors had already approved the decision.
Egis said that the shares would be sold in after-hours block trading to minimize the impact on the FocalTech share price.
Egis shares yesterday rose 2.61 percent to close at NT$177 on the over-the-counter market, Acer shares closed up 0.88 percent at NT$34.45 on the main board and FocalTech shares plunged 9.98 percent to close at NT$198.5.
The TAIEX closed up 0.61 percent.
GLOBAL SHORTAGE
Acer is moving to acquire the stake in FocalTech as a lack of critical components, such as semiconductors, has become a big problem in the global PC industry, analysts said.
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