Dell Acquires EMC

Dell Inc. and private-equity firm Silver Lake will buy EMC for roughly $67 billion in cash and stock, marking the biggest technology-industry takeover ever.

 

Joe Tucci, EMC’s long-time Chief Executive, will be chairman and CEO of EMC until the transaction closes. Upon completion, Mr. Dell will lead the combined company as chairman and CEO. 

 

VMware, in which EMC owns about 80%, will remain a publicly traded company. Some have speculated that Dell could sell part of the VMware stake it is acquiring, possibly to help fund the massive deal but apparently Dell intends to keep that structure intact. “Our mission and strategy remain unchanged,” VMware chief executive Pat Gelsinger said. He reiterated that VMware will remain a publicly traded company.

 

"We're creating an unbelievable powerhouse of an enterprise company," Dell Chairman and CEO Michael Dell told CNBC, "This is really all about bringing together complementary technologies and helping our customers address the challenges and opportunities that this digital future is creating."

 

The acquisition of EMC is seen helping Dell diversify from the stagnant personal computer market and give it the scale to attack the faster-growing and more lucrative market for managing and storing data for businesses.

 

But EMC also has included a 60-day “go shop” provision, which would allow it to solicit superior offers. The deal is expected to close in mid-2016 so technically the acquisition is not final.