A proposed tie-up between rival semiconductor manufacturers Broadcom and Qualcomm is expected to come under particular regulatory scrutiny in China as authorities there look to protect domestic players in a key industrial sector. 

“Given China’s ambitions in the chip and mobile telecoms space, I can’t see the Chinese authorities taking kindly to a Broadcom-Qualcomm merger. It would likely create the biggest and most powerful player in the mobile chip market,” said a Hong Kong-based technology lawyer who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject. 

Broadcom on Monday unveiled an unsolicited $130bn bid for Qualcomm, which would be the single largest pure technology deal in history and create a $200bn manufacturing giant making semiconductors crucial for everything from smartphones to computers.