ARC International accepts Virage bid

18th Aug 2009 07:24

Chip designer Arc International is recommending a £25.2m cash bid from US semiconductor intellectual property firm Virage Logic.The 16.25p a share investors will receive is a 38% premium to the price traded a day before the UK firm announced it had received an approach back in July.Virage has received irrevocable undertakings to accept the offer from shareholders owning almost 51% of the company, plus CFDs equivalent to a further 5.2%."With approximately $24m in revenue for the trailing twelve months ended 30 June 2009 and over 150 customers, ARC would contribute meaningful scale to our business," said J. Daniel McCranie, executive chairman of Virage.ARC chairman Richard Barfield said the offer "delivers value and certainty" to ARC shareholders.In August, Arc said pre-tax losses grew to £5m in the six months to June 30 from £2.3m over the same period the previous year as revenue slipped 22% to £7.3m. "Whilst we are mindful that conditions in our markets remain tough and are expected to remain so in the short to medium term, we continue to win orders," the group said.