In an explanation, Economic Affairs writes that signals of mismanagement are “acute” and pose a risk to Dutch and European economic security. Without intervention, Nexperia’s chip technology could become unavailable in an emergency. To prevent this, it was decided to place the company under supervision.
Emergency law
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The measure was taken on the basis of the Availability of Goods Act (Wbg), an emergency law that is almost never used. Nexperia is not allowed to make major decisions about its organization, assets or intellectual property for a year. Production may continue. “The law is only used if there is absolutely no other option,” the ministry emphasizes.
Chinese owner Nexperia is restructuring under American pressure
Parent company Wingtech Technology is furious and accuses the Netherlands of political interference and speaks of “discrimination against Chinese companies”. The case is widely reported in Chinese media. “The Dutch government’s decision to freeze Nexperia’s global operations under the pretext of national security is not an actual risk assessment, but an exaggerated intervention driven by geopolitical bias,” Wingtech wrote, according to Chinese social media posts.
CEO suspended
The Enterprise Chamber of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal also intervened in Nexperia earlier this month. Several sources told De Telegraaf this. CEO Zhang Xuezheng (known internationally as Wing Zhang) has been suspended and an independent director has been appointed. In the meantime, production in the factories continues as usual. In a short statement, Nexperia said it did not wish to comment.
China hits back at Trump: if necessary, another trade war with the US
Nexperia was part of Philips and later split from NXP. In 2019, it fell into the hands of the Chinese electronics group Wingtech Technology, which has been the sole owner since 2021. The company has 14,000 employees worldwide, about 500 of whom are in the Netherlands.
Nexperia doesn’t make cutting-edge AI chips or data center processors, but simple semiconductors that are in almost every device: from phones and cars to solar panels. The company estimates that it is responsible for about a quarter of the world’s commodity chips.
