Global law firm Freshfields has advised Infineon Technologies AG on the financing of the purchase price for the acquisition of the automotive Ethernet business of US-based tech company Marvell Technology, Inc.

Infineon Technologies AG, headquartered in Neubiberg near Munich, is a global leader in semiconductor solutions for power systems and the Internet of Things (IoT). With its products and solutions, Infineon contributes to the advancement of decarbonisation and digitalisation. The company employs approximately 58,060 people worldwide (as of the end of September 2024) and generated revenues of around €15 billion in the 2024 fiscal year (ending in September).

The aim of the acquisition is Marvell’s leading Brightlane™ automotive Ethernet portfolio, comprising PHY transceivers, switches, and bridges, which support data transfer rates ranging from today’s 100 Mbps (megabits per second) to market-leading 10 Gbps (gigabits per second). The portfolio also provides the security features required for today’s and future vehicle networks.

This transaction combines Infineon’s market-leading automotive microcontroller portfolio with Marvell’s automotive Ethernet business, thereby enhancing system expertise for software-defined vehicles.

Freshfields once again advised Infineon on an acquisition financing. Back in 2019, a team led by Frank Laudenklos and Alexander Pospisil advised on the acquisition of Cypress Semiconductor Corporation.

The Freshfields team was led by Partner Frank Laudenklos (Frankfurt) and Counsel Alexander Pospisil (Frankfurt/Berlin) and also included Associates Alexander Bräuer and Thilo Köhler (both Frankfurt, all Finance). The in-house financing team was led by Stefanie Mösges and Oliver Henningsmeier.