American technology company Xilinx has hired Barclays to advise their bid to acquire Israeli chipmaker Mellanox in a deal that could be worth $5.5 billion, CNBC reported Wednesday.
Citing anonymous individuals said to be familiar with the private negotiations, should a deal be concluded, it is expected to be announced in December.
Last month, CNBC reported that Mellanox had hired a financial adviser to explore the possibility of a sale following takeover interest from at least two companies.
The Yokne’am-based company, founded in 1999 and listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, supplies end-to-end interconnect solutions and services for data center servers and storage systems.
Shares in the company rose by more than 4% on Wednesday to nearly $93 per share following the report. CNBC sources said a takeover price could exceed $100, thereby valuing Mellanox at approximately $5.5 billion.