The Dutch government has intervened to take effective control of technology group Nexperia, which is owned by Chinese group Wingtech Technology.
The decision comes amid a growing rift between China and the West over the development of technology such as computer chips and semiconductors, which are essential components for the manufacture of artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Here is more about what the Dutch government announced, why and what happens next.
What has the Dutch government announced?
In a statement released on Sunday, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs said it had invoked the “highly exceptional” Goods Availability Act to intervene and take control of Nexperia on September 30.
The Goods Availability Act allows the Netherlands to intervene in privately owned companies in exceptional circumstances, such as if the government perceives a threat to the country’s economic security or if it is necessary to ensure that critical goods remain available.
Why has the Dutch government taken this step?
The move followed an emergency hearing by the Dutch Enterprise Chamber on October 7, which concluded that there may be “valid reasons to doubt sound management at Nexperia under the leadership of former CEO Zhang Xuezheng”, a statement from the company said.
The Dutch Enterprise Chamber is a special division of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal, which hears corporate law cases and other matters that could have major social or financial consequences.
In its statement, the government said the intervention had been carried out “due to serious administrative shortcomings” at Nexperia, which “posed a threat to the continuity and safeguarding on Dutch and European soil of crucial technological knowledge and capabilities”.
It claimed that the intervention would ensure Nexperia’s finished and semi-finished products would remain available in case of an emergency.
The ministry added that “losing these capabilities could pose a risk to Dutch and European economic security.”
Following this intervention, it said, “the company’s regular production process can continue.”
However, it added, “Based on the order, decisions within the company can be blocked or reversed if they are (potentially) harmful to the company’s interests, its future as a Dutch and European company, and/or the preservation of this crucial value chain for Europe.”
The statement said that “involved parties” can appeal the decision in court.
What is Nexperia and how has it responded to the government action?
Nexperia is a global semiconductor manufacturer headquartered in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. It emerged as a result of electronics group Philips’ purchase of London-based Mullard Radio Valve Company and Hamburg-based Valvo in the 1920s, ultimately forming Philips’ semiconductor operation. In 2006, Philips spun off its semiconductor division, which became NXP Semiconductors, and this was later sold to a consortium of investors led by Beijing Jianguang Asset Management (JAC Capital). Wingtech acquired Nexperia from that consortium for $3.63bn in 2018.
According to its website, Nexperia employs 12,500 people in Europe, Asia and the United States.
Nexperia’s manufacturing site spans more than 80,000 square metres (861,000dsq feet) and has the capacity to build more than 50 billion components annually. It also has sales offices and research-and-development sites in China.
On Tuesday, Nexperia announced that it had suspended Zhang, founder of Wingtech, as a director and removed him as chief executive officer (CEO). It has appointed Stegan Tilger, chief financial officer (CFO), as interim CEO.
“Due to the same serious managerial shortcomings, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs observed that Nexperia’s operations in Europe were being compromised in an unacceptable manner. This situation raised broader concerns for the Dutch government about the availability of semiconductor products critical to the European industry,” Nexperia’s statement said.
“The combination of Zhang Xuezheng’s behaviour as CEO and (indirect) shareholder, as well as concerns about the semiconductor product availability in the Netherlands and Europe, ultimately led the Dutch government to intervene with an exceptional emergency order on the basis of the Goods Availability Act.”
The statement added that the government’s order has also prohibited Nexperia from relocating company assets, firing existing executives or making important decisions without explicit government approval for one year.
Nexperia said it is confident its daily operations will continue as usual.
What has led up to all this?
On October 9, China tightened export controls for critical rare-earth metals, citing national security interests. Foreign companies must now obtain approval from Beijing before they can export the named rare-earth metals or any products that contain them. Exporters must tell the government how the products will be used.
The US is a major consumer of Chinese rare-earth metals, which are critical for its defence industry. Following China’s announcement about new export restrictions, US President Donald Trump responded by threatening to impose a new 100 percent trade tariff on China.
Besides being used for the manufacture of smartphones, electric cars and weapons, rare-earth metals are also used in the manufacture of semiconductors, which are essential for the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
The US and its Western allies in Europe have, in recent years, passed regulations restricting China’s access to Western semiconductor technology, fearing that China could reverse-engineer and manufacture the technology, moving ahead in the technological race.
In 2022, former Democratic US President Joe Biden restricted China’s access to US semiconductors. The new rules extended restrictions on chipmaking tools being sold to industries which support the semiconductor supply chain. They blocked these industries from accessing US technical expertise, as well as the key components required to build the machines that produce microchips.
The US further tightened these restrictions in October 2023 and, again, in December 2024.
On September 29, 2025, the US Bureau of Industry and Security extended US export control restrictions to all groups which are at least 50 percent-owned by one or more entities on the US Entity List, a list of foreign organisations and companies believed to be participating in, or are at significant risk of participating in, activities that go against US national security or foreign policy interests. These entities are subject to sanctions, export restrictions or licensing requirements. While Nexperia itself is not on the list, Wingtech was added in December 2024.
Then, on October 4, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced export controls preventing Nexperia China and its subcontractors from exporting certain finished components and sub-assemblies made in China.
“Nexperia is actively engaging with the Chinese authorities to obtain an exemption from these restrictions and has deployed all available resources to that end,” the Nexperia statement said.
“While Nexperia has made sufficient preparations to ensure business continuity – and as the BIS rule provides for a 60-day grace period – we are confident that a solution will be found,” Nexperia said in its statement on Tuesday.
Compounding all this, earlier in the year, US President Donald Trump imposed tariffs of 145 percent on Chinese imports to the US. China retaliated with a tariff of 125 percent on US goods. Both countries then reduced their tariffs for 90 days in May to allow for trade talks. In August, the two agreed to another 90-day pause, with the most recent round of talks taking place between US and Chinese officials in Spain last month.
But the US has also imposed restrictions on most Chinese cars from being sold in the US. These include high tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles.
In addition to its standard 10 percent car import duty, the EU announced last year that it would impose a range of additional tariffs on electric vehicles, from 7.8 percent for Tesla vehicles to 35.3 percent on China’s state-owned SAIC [Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation] vehicles.
How have Wingtech and China responded to the Dutch government announcement?
Wingtech released a social media statement saying it “firmly opposes the politicisation of commercial matters”.
In the post, it deemed the Dutch government’s move “an excessive intervention based on geopolitical bias rather than a fact-based risk assessment” that is based on the “unfounded pretext of national security”.
Shares in Wingtech have plummeted by 10 percent on the Shanghai Stock Exchange since the announcement. As a result, Wingtech was forced to explain the situation to the exchange, saying that the Dutch government’s decision “temporarily restricts” its control over Nexperia.
Beijing “consistently opposes the overstretching of national security concepts and discriminatory practices targeting companies from specific countries”, Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on Monday.
“Relevant countries should genuinely uphold market principles and avoid politicising economic and trade issues.”
How have others reacted?
Source: Aljazeera
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