Chipmaker Nexperia says ousted Chinese CEO spreading ‘falsehoods’
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The Dutch government in September seized control of Nexperia, which is headquartered in the Netherlands, but was acquired by Jiaxing-based Wingtech Technology in 2019.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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NijmegeN, Netherlands – Chipmaker Nexperia has accused its ousted chief executive officer of spreading “falsehoods” that it is now operating independently in China, as fallout from the Dutch government seizing control of the company continues.
The company accused Mr Zhang Xuezheng in a statement on Oct 20 of “unauthorised actions” after his suspension by a Dutch court.
It said claims that Nexperia’s Chinese operations are now an independent entity are false.
“Furthermore, claims have been made that Nexperia has not been paying salaries to its employees,” the company said. “These statements are factually incorrect and misleading.”
The escalation follows the Dutch government’s unprecedented step in September of seizing control of Nexperia, a key supplier of chips used by the automotive and consumer electronics industries, illustrating heightened trade tensions between China and Europe.
Nexperia is headquartered in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, but was acquired by Jiaxing-based Wingtech Technology in 2019. It now has Chinese ownership and significant operations in the country, with the Wingtech founder, Mr Zhang, taking the top job in 2020.
The Dutch government took control after a warning by the US government in June that it will need to replace Mr Zhang for Nexperia to qualify for exemption from a list of sanctioned companies. Wingtech was put on the US Entity List in 2024, and the concern was that Nexperia would not act independently of its parent.
The takeover has splintered the company and ratcheted up geopolitical tensions with Beijing.
Nexperia’s remarks about its former CEO were in response to a statement from its Chinese unit, which said on Oct 19 that local employees could ignore instructions issued by the Dutch headquarters.
Employees have the right to disregard any instructions issued outside of China, the local unit wrote on its official WeChat page. Nexperia’s domestic unit is a Chinese company with operations rooted in China, it said.
Beijing has since retaliated by blocking Nexperia from exporting products from China, with its Ministry of Commerce expressing hope that the Netherlands will correct its “wrongdoing”.
Dutch Economic Affairs Minister Vincent Karremans said in an interview with television show Buitenhof on Oct 19 that he is set to speak with his Chinese counterpart and the European Commission on how to resolve the issue.
If he had not intervened in Nexperia, “Europe would have been 100 per cent dependent for these sorts of chips, in terms of knowledge, expertise and capacity, on foreign countries”, Mr Karremans said. BLOOMBERG
