The UK government is to examine the sale of computer chip designer Arm Holdings to a US company on national security grounds.
Japan’s SoftBank intended to sell the UK tech company to Nvidia for about $40bn (£29.5bn).
But Digital Secretary Oliver Dowden said he wanted the UK’s competition watchdog to assess its implications.
“Following careful consideration of the proposed takeover, I have today issued an intervention notice,” he said.
“As a next step and to help me gather the relevant information, the UK’s independent competition authority will now prepare a report on the implications of the transaction, which will help inform any further decisions.”
Arm’s technology is at the heart of most smartphones and smart devices worldwide.
But there were concerns when the Cambridge-based designer – which licenses its tech to the likes of Apple, Samsung and Huawei – accepted the offer from Nvidia, a US graphics chip specialist.