Dell swoops on EMC with £42 billion in largest tech firm takeover attempt

Londoners driving in from Heathrow could see a new name on the eye-catching EMC tower after a $65 billion (£42 billion) takeover bid from computer maker Dell for the data storage company.

The acquisition of EMC, which sponsors Wasps rugby club and has its prominent data centre tower on the M4 near Brentford, would be the largest tech takeover in history, topping eBay’s $49 billion takeover of PayPal earlier this year.

Dell is set to propose a $33-a-share bid for the tech group, made up of $27 in cash and the rest in newly issued shares tied to the price of EMC subsidiary VMware.

Privately-owned Dell will also give EMC 60 days to find a better deal from rivals in a bid to placate top EMC shareholder Elliott Management, which has called for a break-up of the group rather than an outright sale.

The “go shop” period has been inserted by EMC boss Joe Tucci to stave off a potential rebellion by Elliott.