Japan’s MegaChips to buy VC-backed SiTime

Prior to this deal, SiTime received five rounds of funding, raising more than $65 million. The most recent of these was in September when the business raised $25 million, comprising a $15 million structured debt facility provided by Capital IP Investment Partners and another $10 million equity investment from undisclosed strategic backers.

The company also has a number of number of VC investors on its roster, the majority of which took part in an undisclosed round led by Innovative Venture Fund - an early stage investment fund set up by Japan's NEC Capital - in November last year. Among them are and SMBC Venture Capital, New Enterprise Associates, Jafco Ventures and Greylock Partners.

Founded by Markus Lutz and Dr. Aaron Partridge, California-based SiTime is a market leader in the analog semiconductor segment that makes components - such as clock generators, oscillators and embedded resonators - used for producing timing signals in electronic products.

Applications for its products, which use microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology, span consumer and industrial electronics, networking communications and storage computing. The firm's silicon-based timing components are seen as a successor to the traditional quartz-based alternatives.

Earlier this year the business made its first foray into the wearables and internet-of-things (IoT) segments with a new ultra-low-power oscillator that allows for electronic devices to deliver higher performance while being smaller and having a longer battery life. SiTime claims to have over 1,000 customers and to have shipped about 250 million units to date. It competitors include Silicon Labs, Micrel, Seiko Epson and Kyocera.

“SiTime will help us expand our portfolio and diversify our customer base,” said Akira Takata, president and CEO of MegaChips Corporation. “SiTime technology is the perfect match for MegaChips’ solutions that target Wearables, Mobile and IoT markets such as ‘frizz’, our ultra-low-power smart phone Sensor Hub LSI and BlueChip Wireless, a sub-GHz RF LSI.”

The deal is scheduled to close next month pending regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. SiTime will retain its name and operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of MegaChips.

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