Deacons has advised Jianguang Asset Management Co (JAC Capital), a subsidiary of Chinese state-owned investment company JIC Capital, on its agreement to buy Netherlands-based NXP Semiconductor’s power amplifier business for $1.8 billion.
JAC Capital will acquire NXP’s RF Power business, which includes a number of patents and associated intellectual property rights, as well as the Dutch company’s back-end manufacturing operations in the Philippines.
NXP said it will use the proceeds from the sale to partly fund the previously announced acquisition of U.S.-based Freescale Semiconductor.
NXP’s RF Power business primarily focuses on creating power amplifiers for the cellular base station market. An RF power amplifier is used to convert a low-power radio-frequency signal into a larger and more powerful signal.
The Deacons team was led by corporate finance partners Alexander Que and Kelvan Cheung, as well as IP partner Catherine Zheng.
Dutch firm Houthoff Buruma advised JAC Capital on local law, while De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek represented NXP.
The deal, which is subject to merger reviews by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, the European Commission and China’s Ministry of Commerce, is expected to close before the end of the year.
