Softbank increases staff at ARM after its controversial takeover

ARM Holdings has hired more than 1,000 extra staff since its sale to Softbank, suggesting the British microchip giant’s Japanese owner is following through on its pledges to increase investment in the UK.

A report prepared by Softbank for the UK Takeover Panel showed that staff numbers have grown from 1,749 to 2,173 in the UK in the year since the deal, while overseas employees have increased from 2,220 to 2,845. ARM, whose microprocessor designs feature in billions of smartphones as well as other portable gadgets, was the UK’S most prominent listed technology company before last year’s £24bn sale.

The takeover of the UK tech industry’s crown jewel was seen by some as an indictment of a lack of British global ambition.

To smooth over the deal, Softbank said it would double the number of UK and global employees, as well as the number of hi-tech staff. It also promised to keep its headquarters in Britain.

The legally binding pledges are the first test of new Takeover Code rules designed to prevent foreign companies from breaking promises made when buying British firms, and the company said it would report each year on the changes. The first report, audited by Grant Thornton, showed a 25pc rise in total headcount, suggesting ARM is on track to more than double staff within five years. However, it admitted a small number of these could be Softbank employees being transferred to ARM.

The firm opened two new offices in Cambridge to bring its total to 11. Softbank’s takeover, announced last July, was criticised as a move designed to capitalise on the pound’s fall after the EU referendum. Since the deal, 25pc of ARM has been transferred to the Softbank Vision Fund, a $91bn (£70bn) tech fund based in London.

“This progress on undertakings illustrates not only Softbank’s ambition to develop ARM into one of the leading global technology companies, but also its commitment to UK jobs and research and development,” the firm said.