SoftBank - ARM

SoftBank in July said it plans to acquire mobile semiconductor design company ARM Holdings in an all-cash transaction valued at $32 billion as it aims to become a leader in the Internet of Things.

SoftBank, a computer software company, first broke into the mobile phone industry in 2006 by acquiring Vodafone's Japanese unit for $15 billion and digging deeper into telecommunications. Meanwhile, Cambridge, U.K.-based ARM got a head start in the mobile segment, unlike competitors like Intel, and its chip designs are in most smartphones, tablets and mobile devices across the world. The company gets royalties when mobile vendors like Apple, Samsung and Qualcomm adopt its designs.