SanDisk To Acquire msystems For $1.55 Billion In Stock

Sunday July 30th 2006, SanDisk and msystems entered into definitive agreements for SanDisk to acquire msystems in an all stock transaction ($1.55 Billion).

You most probably know SanDisk, the manufacturer of Cruzer Crossfire USB Drives, Cruzer Freedom for students, and Cruzer Profile.

“SanDisk and msystems, over the past 18 years, have been leading innovators in the flash storage market. This strategic acquisition will give us the critical mass and complementary products, customers, channels, technology and manufacturing base to take our shared vision to the next level. The NAND flash data storage business is in its early stages and we believe the market opportunity is largely untapped,” said Eli Harari, Chairman and CEO of SanDisk. “msystems is a leader in flash memory systems addressing mobile, portable and embedded markets and they have a strong team, significant IP and important OEM customers. SanDisk has a record of creating new market categories, world-class manufacturing capabilities and leading market share in the retail channel. Both companies are noted for their relentless innovation, and this acquisition is intended to further accelerate our pace of innovation. In the near term, this transaction better positions SanDisk to serve the expanding storage needs of handset manufacturers and mobile network operators. In the long term, the combination with msystems will be a catalyst in the development of next generation flash enabled consumer applications. We are extremely excited about joining forces with the msystems team to achieve our shared vision. We are committed to serving msystems’ OEM customers after the transaction closes.”

“From mDOC to megaSIM, from U3 to x4, msystems is creating new markets through innovation,” said Dov Moran, President and Chief Executive Officer of msystems. “We are truly proud of our achievements to date. This strategic deal will enable us to continue supporting our OEM customers, to whom we remain fully committed, and strengthen our innovation and product offering with SanDisk’s leading edge, low-cost fab capacity. This deal has synergy at its core, encompassing people, technology, products and customers. Based on our shared vision, as well as our teams’ history of successful and fruitful cooperation, I am confident we can succeed in achieving the goals we set for ourselves. I also believe that SanDisk’s extensive silicon expertise will prove itself as a strong catalyst to productizing our revolutionary x4 technology as well as other future innovations.”

Worth mentioning that SanDisk & msystems were the two main companies backing the new U3 platform for USB flash drives since it's been founded in 2004.

Read Also:
SanDisk To Acquire Msystems (SanDisk Press Release)
SanDisk to Acquire msystems (msystems News Release)
Sandisk buys Msystems for $1.55 billion (Engadget)