IC packaging and testing house Advanced Engineering Semiconductor (ASE) has announced that its board of directors has approved a NT$450 million (US$13.7 million) loan to DRAM maker Powerchip Semiconductor Corporation (PSC).
The loan will be used to repay the PSC-issued unsecured corporate bond that ASE bought last year, according to an ASE filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE). The loan will be collateralized by an equivalent amount of PSC's holdings in Rexchip Electronics, the DRAM maker's joint venture with Japan's Elpida Memory.
ASE and PSC in December 2006 forged a joint venture, Power ASE Technology, which focuses on packaging and testing memory products. Currently ASE and PSC hold 56% and 37.4% of the joint venture, respectively, with the remaining 6.6% being owned by ASE's employees and others.
PSC previously secured loans of US$125 million from Powertech Technology (PTI) and Kingston Technology, with its Rexchip shares also used as collateral.
Article translated by Jessie Shen
