Key Takeaways

Nvidia ( NVDA ) shares moved lower Monday after China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) said it is investigating the chipmaking giant for potential violations of the country's anti-monopoly laws.

The antitrust regulator said Monday that it is looking into Nvidia over the chipmaker's 2020 acquisition of Israeli-American networking hardware maker Mellanox Technologies. SAMR said it "is opening a probe into Nvidia in accordance with law," according to a translation from CNBC.

In a statement provided to Investopedia, a company spokesperson wrote, "NVIDIA wins on merit, as reflected in our benchmark results and value to customers, and customers can choose whatever solution is best for them. We work hard to provide the best products we can in every region and honor our commitments everywhere we do business. We are happy to answer any questions regulators may have about our business."

The $6.9 billion deal was announced in March 2019 and completed in April 2020, days after the same Chinese regulators signed off on the deal along with regulators in Europe, Mexico, and the U.S.

Approval for the deal came with the conditions from Chinese regulators that Nvidia wouldn't discriminate against its companies and that Mellanox informed competitors of new products within 90 days of providing them to Nvidia, according to Bloomberg.

Shares of the chipmaker that have surged thanks to the artificial intelligence (AI) boom were down about 2% Monday afternoon to $139.61, but still have risen more than 180% since the start of the year.

UPDATE—This article has been updated with a statement from Nvidia, additional information, and the latest share price movements.

Read the original article on Investopedia