Mitsui Chemicals, with support from policy bank Development Bank of Japan (DBJ), will acquire JSR, a key semiconductor materials maker, for JPY 1.84 trillion (about $12 billion) to strengthen control over critical chip materials. In a filing on Monday, the two said they will buy all JSR shares from government-backed Japan Investment Corporation (JIC). DBJ will pay JPY 200 billion in cash for its stake, which will then convert into non-voting preferred shares.
JSR is one of the world's leading photoresist makers, a material essential for advanced chip manufacturing. The deal advances a Japanese government-led consolidation of the semiconductor materials industry. Japan has the world's largest silicon wafer supplier and dominates several other key chip materials, but many of its small and mid-sized suppliers remain vulnerable to foreign acquisitions. On the news, Mitsui Chemicals shares fell as much as 15% in Tokyo.
JIC privatized JSR two years ago. JSR's photosensitive materials work with ASML's EUV lithography equipment to form fine circuit patterns on silicon wafers. Per Bloomberg data, JSR's specialty chemical products serve customers including TSMC, Intel, and Samsung Electronics. Reports in September said JSR was evaluating acquisition proposals from Mitsui Chemicals and rival Mitsubishi Chemical Group.
ICgoodFind Summary: Mitsui Chemicals and DBJ's $12 billion acquisition of JSR centers on photoresist capability paired with ASML EUV tools, with customers spanning TSMC, Intel, and Samsung. The Japanese government-led materials consolidation aims to prevent foreign acquisition of key suppliers, bringing photoresist—a critical chipmaking link—further into the domestic industrial system.
