Custom chip designer Marvell has signed a deal to acquire optical chip and networking equipment maker Lumentum in an all-stock deal with an enterprise value of $115 billion (including debt) and an equity value of about $80 billion. Marvell will provide 4.5 shares of its common stock for each share of Lumentum.
This makes the deal one of the biggest acquisitions in tech history. It compares to Microsoft buying Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in 2022 and Dell buying EMC for $67 billion in 2016.
Interestingly, the two companies have one major shareholder in common: Nvidia. In March, as part of a multi-year agreement to purchase Lumentum’s advanced laser components, the GPU giant invested $2 billion to support Lumentum’s R&D efforts and fab expansion. Later that same month, Marvell announced that Nvidia invested $2 billion in an effort to beef up Marvell’s optical networking and chips portfolio.
With Lumentum, Marvell says it will become a leader in AI connectivity, with products that range from chips to data centers. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of calendar year 2028, should both companies’ shareholders, and regulators, agree.
