Synaptics close to finalising revised deal with Chinese investment group

US touchscreen chip maker Synaptics Inc is nearing a deal to sell itself for more than $110 per share to a Chinese investment group, three months after it rejected a less than $4-billion takeover offer from it.

Synaptics develops human interface solutions based on touch, display and biometrics technologies for a large range of mobile computing, PC, entertainment and other consumer electronic devices.

Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg yesterday reported that the Chinese investment group will offer to pay more than $110 per share, valuing the California-based company at less than $4 billion.

In August, Synaptics had rejected as being too low, the $110 per share offer from the Chinese investment group, which had offered a premium of 70-per cent to the US company's closing price a day before the bid was tabled. (See: US touchscreen chip maker Synaptics rejects $4 bn bid from Chinese investment group)

Synaptics may be seeking as much as $125 a share and a deal is likely to be announced in early March after the Chinese New Year, the report said.

Synaptics, which has a market value of about $2.85 billion, produces chips used in touchscreen display and biometrics technologies for a large range of mobile computing, PC, entertainment and other consumer electronic devices.

It makes touchscreen display chips that are used in devices including notebook PCs, PC peripherals, mobile devices, tablets and other consumer electronics.

Its clients include companies like Acer, Amazon, Asus, Dell, Google, HP, HTC, Lenovo, LG, Microsoft, Nokia, Samsung, Sony, Sony Ericsson, Huawei, ZTE, BlackBerry, and Toshiba.

The company has more than 2 billion unique capacitive touch solutions in the market and has over 1,500 patents issued or pending.

A potential deal will be scrutinised by the US Committee on Foreign Investment, which has history of rejecting Chinese takeover of US technology companies.