Nexperia is headquartered in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, and specializes in manufacturing low-end chips for consumer electronics, automotive and industrial use, and has factories in Germany and the UK.

On October 12, the Dutch government announced that it had taken control of the company, while Nexperia confirmed that CEO and major shareholder Zhang Xuezheng had been suspended by court order.

Pressure from Washington and the technology “blacklist”

According to documents from the Amsterdam Court of Appeal, US officials had informed the Dutch government that Mr. Zhang would have to be replaced if Nexperia wanted to be exempted from the entity list - a list of companies subject to US export restrictions.

Companies on this list are subject to strict controls on access to US technology.

nexperia
Outside the Nexperia headquarters in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. Photo: ANP/SIPA

Amsterdam's rare move comes amid escalating US-China tensions, after Washington expanded export controls in September.

The US Department of Commerce added a “50%” rule: any subsidiary that is 50% or more owned by a blacklisted company will automatically be subject to similar restrictions.

This has dragged Nexperia - a 100% owned subsidiary of Wingtech (China) - into the ban, as Wingtech has been on the list since late last year.

Beijing reacted furiously, imposing export restrictions on rare earths – essential materials in chip production – and prompting US President Donald Trump to threaten “extremely high” new tariffs.

Preventing European supply chain security risks

The Dutch government cited “serious deficiencies in corporate governance” in deciding to nationalize Nexperia, an “exceptional and rare action” taken by the Ministry of Economy to prevent the disruption of critical European chips in an emergency, according to the ministry.

In a statement on Tuesday, Nexperia said the government had imposed a one-year temporary supervisory authority, prohibiting the company from transferring assets or making strategic decisions without state approval.

Nexperia added that it was confident it could find a solution that complied with US regulations, and revealed that China had imposed export restrictions on components made domestically by Nexperia, but the company was working with Beijing officials to seek exemptions.

Parent company Wingtech opposes the discriminatory treatment and has initiated legal and diplomatic channels to request the annulment of the Dutch decision.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian also spoke out, calling on countries to "adhere to market principles and not politicize economic and trade issues," while emphasizing that "China will resolutely defend its legitimate rights."

The Nexperia incident marks a new turning point in the global technology war: the US continues to tighten China's technological influence in Europe, while EU countries such as the Netherlands, Germany or the UK have to choose between protecting supply chains and maintaining economic relations with Beijing.

(According to CNN)

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Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/ly-do-thuc-su-khien-ha-lan-quoc-huu-hoa-cong-ty-chip-trung-quoc-2453648.html