RF and mixed-signal IC vendor MaxLinear Inc. will acquire rival analog chip maker Exar Corp. for about $700 million in cash, the companies said Wednesday (March 29).

MaxLinear (San Diego) said the deal would bolster its strategy by increasing the firm's scale, diversifying revenue and expanding its analog and mixed-signal footprint. MaxLinear said Exar would add a portfolio of products for power management and interfaces for the wireless and wireline communications infrastructure, broadband access, industrial, enterprise networking and automotive markets.

"Exar’s expertise in power management and interface technologies, along with an extensive distribution platform, should enable us to accelerate our growth, capitalize on cross-selling opportunities and better serve our customers," said Kishore Seendripu, MaxLinear CEO, in a statement.

Under the terms of the deal, structured as a tender offer, MaxLinear will pay $13 cash for each share of Exar, a 22 percent premium over Exar's Tuesday closing price of $10.62 per share. The deal's total value, net of Exar's cash on hand, is roughly $472 million, MaxLinear said.

The deal is expected to close in the second quarter, MaxLinear said.

—Dylan McGrath covers the semiconductor industry and business news for EE Times.

 ----Form EE Times