Qualcomm president and CEO-elect Cristiano Amon (pictured) indicated the tech giant would be interested in buying a stake in Arm if a big money Nvidia acquisition of the chip design company is scuppered by regulators, The Sunday Telegraph reported.

Amon told the UK newspaper Qualcomm had been in discussions with other interested parties on a potential Arm investment should events fall its way.

The president explained any Qualcomm move for Arm would rely on the chip design business having an “independent future” and being publicly listed by its current owner SoftBank Group. Should a listing take place, he expected a consortium of companies including Arm customers to invest alongside Qualcomm.

Nvidia struck a $40 billion deal with SoftBank to buy Arm in September 2020 with the deal subject to approval from regulators in the UK, European Union, US and China.

At the time of announcing the agreement Nvidia estimated the process would take 18 months.

UK authorities have subsequently commissioned a report into the implications while a number of parties in the US oppose the deal.

Qualcomm is among those reportedly raising concerns about the long-term implications of the acquisition with US authorities.