Chipmaker Virage Logic Corp. stuck a tentative toe into the M&A pool Monday, announcing an agreement to buy intellectual property and design services provider Ingot Systems Inc.

No terms were announced, but the deal is sure to pay off for the four-year-old startup's founders and 30 employees. Ingot co-founder, president and CEO Jai Iyer tells Tech Confidential in an e-mail Tuesday that the company was entirely bootstrapped. 

Virage has not been active in the acquisition game. Its last notable deal was way back in 2002, when it acquired another IP library company, tiny In-Chip Systems, for $17 million. Ingot and In-Chip design aspects of chips and license their designs to chipmakers and electronics companies. It's a low overhead way to start a company that doesn't necessarily require VC backing and can provide a handsome return for employees, the people who, after all, deserve it the most. —Olaf de Senerpont Domis

See Virage Logic press release
See Oct. 1, 2002, story from TheDeal.com

Tags: Virage Logic, Ingot Systems, semiconductors, deals, m&a, mergers