US Chip Giants Circle Dutch Packaging Pioneer BESI in Potential Fifteen Billion Euro Takeover

Major US Chip Firms Eye Dutch Packaging Leader

BE Semiconductor Industries, the Amsterdam-listed chip-packaging equipment maker, has attracted takeover interest from two of the largest US semiconductor equipment manufacturers: Lam Research and Applied Materials. The company, valued at roughly fourteen billion euros, has been working with investment bank Morgan Stanley to evaluate the approaches.

Hybrid Bonding at the Heart of the Deal

At the centre of the interest is BESI's hybrid bonding technology, a process that directly fuses chips using copper-to-copper connections, enabling faster data transfer and lower power consumption than traditional packaging methods. Applied Materials already holds a nine percent stake in BESI, acquired in April twenty twenty-five, making it the largest shareholder. The two companies have collaborated since twenty twenty on integrated hybrid bonding systems.

Geopolitical Hurdles and Resumed Talks

Discussions began in mid twenty twenty-five but stalled earlier this year amid tensions between the United States and European Union over President Trump's push regarding Greenland. Any acquisition of a Dutch company with strategic technology would require a national security review. Despite the pause, bidders including Lam Research have recently resumed talks.

Market Momentum

BESI shares surged as much as fourteen percent on the news, hitting an all-time intraday high. The company reported strong momentum in the fourth quarter of twenty twenty-five, with orders rising forty-three percent quarter-over-quarter to two hundred and fifty million euros, driven by data centre buildouts and demand for AI chips. Hybrid bonding revenues are projected to grow dramatically, potentially accounting for one-third of BESI's total business by twenty twenty-six.

Strategic Significance

Advanced packaging has become a critical bottleneck in the semiconductor industry as chipmakers race to serve booming demand from AI and high-performance computing. Analysts have described Applied Materials as the most logical acquirer given the close cooperation and complementary technologies between the two firms.