ABN AMRO is in the market with a $250 million acquisition credit for Milpitas, Calif-based LSI Logic. The spread on the new revolver is LIBOR plus 13/4 % and the company is BB-/Ba2 rated. A spokesman declined to provide a date for when syndication will close. Calls to officials at ABN AMRO were not returned by press time.
The credit backs the acquisition of American Megatrends RAID business, including 200 employees, intellectual property and the host adapter board product family, explained a spokesman for LSI. Commenting on the choice of lead arranger, the spokesman, said that ABN AMRO was used to finance LSI's acquisition of Symbios from Hyundai in 1998, an $800 million deal executed at the height of the Asian currency crisis.
LSI is active in mergers and acquisitions, the spokesman noted, adding that takeovers enable the company to build a full product offering, enhance intellectual property and boost research and development quickly. "It's about speed to market," he commented. "There is a downturn at the moment, and some observers predict this could be the worst year in the history of the semiconductor market," he noted, "but this is a notoriously cyclical industry." Redundant Array of Independent Disks is a tool that boosts network performance and data recover. LSI designs and makes standard chips, as well as application-specific integrated circuits. It is also positioning itself in the storage area network market. The RAID acquisition positions LSI as a one-stop shop, he said.