Turns out you can close the stable door once the horse has bolted — and recapture the flighty equine too. The Dutch government has seized control of Nexperia, the domestic chipmaker acquired by China’s Wingtech in 2019, citing risks to Europe’s economic security.
It is unclear how, exactly, the Dutch government will use its new powers; economy minister Vincent Karremans can now block or reverse decisions taken by Nexperia’s board. That could presumably include Wingtech’s recent sale of assembly assets to Luxshare Precision. The precise nature of the “serious governance shortcomings” alleged by the Dutch government is also unclear.
Yet this rather radical step is clearly an escalation of an existing trend. Deals have been unwound before. Indeed, in 2022 Britain ordered Nexperia itself to divest Newport Wafer Fab, a Welsh plant, having previously waved through the deal. And in 2019 US regulators ordered Beijing’s Kunlun to sell its 60 per cent stake in Grindr, three years after the Chinese gaming company first invested in the gay dating app.