The Dutch government is reportedly ready to give up its control of Nexperia if Beijing allows its China unit to resume exports. Sources say that Nexperia may resume operations without government oversight as early as next week, provided that it has verified that chip shipments have restarted and that the financial issues between the Nexperia HQ and its China operations have been resolved, as reported by Bloomberg. The Netherlands seized control of this niche chip maker in early October after it raised concerns that its most important technologies were going to be transferred to Wingtech, its Chinese parent company.
Beijing responded to this move by blocking Nexperia China’s exports, which accounted for nearly 70% of the company’s global output. This move has threatened the global automotive supply chain, especially as Nexperia supplies nearly 40% of the chips used in automobiles. Although Beijing has softened its stance on the export control of Nexperia chips, with the Chinese Ministry of Commerce allowing companies to apply for exemptions so they can get their chip orders going again, this adds a layer of red tape, and approvals are released on a case-by-case basis.
It seems that the drama began when the U.S. blacklisted Wingtech, Nexperia’s parent company, in December 2024, and expanded it with the ‘Affiliates Rule’ in late September 2025. This move meant that subsidiaries and affiliates with more than 50% Chinese ownership would be included in Washington’s entity list. This would gravely impact Nexperia, as Wingtech has a more than 75% stake in the company. Although the reported primary reason for the Dutch takeover is the CEO’s alleged financial misdeeds, the timing of the move, as well as other reports, suggest that the U.S. may have some part in instigating the Netherlands’ action.
We don’t know the reason behind the Dutch move, especially as its concerns about technology transfers don’t seem to be resolved yet. But with Nexperia holding a big chunk of the automotive semiconductor market, car manufacturers in Europe and Japan would have to reduce their output or stop production altogether if the chip supply does not resume sooner, affecting not just the big corporations but potentially thousands of smaller businesses and millions of workers as well.
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