Intel said it has completed the first closing of the sale of its NAND and SSD business to SK Hynix for USD 7 billion. The deal was first announced in October 2020 and concerns the transfer of certain NAND SSD-asociated IP and employees, plus the Dalian NAND memory manufacturing facility in China. SK hynix received merger clearance from the Chinese antitrust authority in December, paving the way for completion. Intel will put the transaction proceeds towards developing new leadership products and advancing long-term growth priorities.
At SK Hynix, the newly bought assets will be rebranded into a new entity called Solidigm, with Intel executive Robert Crooke as CEO. Crooke was previously the GM for Intel’s Non-Volatile Memory Solutions Group. Lee Seok-hee, president and co-CEO of SK Hynix will be appointed executive chairman, and lead the post-merger integration.
Solidigm will have its headquarters in San Jose, California. SK Hynix said the name ‘Solidigm’ reflects the entity’s commitment to creating a “new solid-state paradigm that provides unmatched customer service and revolutionizes the memory storage industry.” The new unit will manage product development, manufacturing and sales of the newly acquired SSD business, formerly operated by Intel.
Intel will continue to manufacture NAND wafers at the SK hynix Dalian memory manufacturing facility and keep certain IP related to the manufacture and design of NAND flash wafers until the close of the second part of the transaction. This final closing should take place in or near March 2025, when SK hynix acquires the remaining NAND business assets from Intel, including certain IP related to the manufacture and design of NAND flash wafers, R&D employees and the Dalian fab workforce, for USD 2 billion.
