IPO

Silver Lake, Intel-Backed Altera Prepares $2 Billion IPO

Shivangi

Sep 11, 2026 11:42 AM IST

Category IPO

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Synopsis

Altera, backed by Silver Lake and Intel, prepares for an IPO that could raise over $2 billion, marking a major semiconductor market return.

Key Highlights

• Chipmaker Altera is working on its IPO estimated at $2 billion in 2026.
• Barclays, Citi, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley are bookrunning the offering for Silver Lake.
• Intel bought Altera in 2015, which went standalone after Silver Lake gained a 51% stake last year.

Silver Lake and Intel-linked chipmaker Altera are planning an IPO, with the potential to raise over $2 billion in 2026. It has the potential to be one of the biggest semiconductor IPOs in recent history.

Silver Lake appointed Barclays, Citi JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley as underwriters on the offering but it wasn’t clear what the final order of banks involved, three sources directly familiar with the matter said.

The company from San Jose plans to file for the IPO in a confidential manner over the next few weeks, with a listing that could take place as soon as this year. The timing and size of the offering are still subject to change, according to sources.

Part of a Record Year for US IPOs

It would be one of the biggest semiconductor IPOs since Arm Holdings’ $5 billion offering as a public company in 2023. The development arrives alongside a slate of significant listings that is prepping the U.S. IPO market for a record year. For instance, based on Dealogic data, U.S. IPOs have raised a record $137 billion through the end of August excluding special-purpose acquisition companies (SPAC).

The outlook for other major listings remains, with AI company Anthropic set to go public as early as October in a roughly $100B deal, people familiar have previously said. Such an offering would outperform SpaceX’s $75 billion raise and have the potential to elevate total IPO proceeds this year above the record of approximately $156B set in 2021.

Altera’s Business and Ownership History

Altera designs programmable chips for a variety of applications and products, from telecom equipment to data centres and industrial equipment to aerospace and defence systems and artificial intelligence applications.

Intel originally bought the company for roughly $16.7 billion in 2015 and Altera was only recently fully standalone from Intel as last September, Silver Lake acquired 51% of Altera in a deal that valued it at $8.75 billion ($4.46 billion) less than what Intel initially paid for it.) Intel holds the other 49% of TPG Capital.

Back in mid-April, Altera CEO Raghib Hussain himself had hinted that maybe the company had plans for the public markets. In July he stated that the company was “getting ready for IPO one day” as it seeks to grow into artificial intelligence and robotics markets.

It may also reflect a quick rise in Altera’s value from when it was acquired by Silver Lake last year. Silver Lake invested approximately $3.3 billion in equity in the transaction alongside investment company MGX based in Abu Dhabi which was a co-investor on the deal.

Broader Context at Intel

As Intel under CEO Lip-Bu Tan undergoes a sweeping restructuring with the ambitious goal of rekindling growth and restoring investor confidence, so too comes an IPO that would reacquaint Altera with public markets after its purchase by a chip maker in 2015.

Tan, who took the helm in 2025, has sought to bolster Intel’s finances through asset disposals, cost-cutting measures and new sources of capital. The U.S. government has previously agreed to purchase a 9.9% interest in Intel as part of an $8.9 billion investment linked to existing semiconductor and defence contract funding from last year.

Intel has also looked to the public markets to help finance its expansion of manufacturing and ambitions in AI. The company completed a follow-on stock offering in August that, at approximately $20 billion, was one of the most profitable equity offerings by a U.S. technology company, proceeds will be used for capital expenditures and working capital respectively.

Source: Reuters