Chinese CEO Fired European Executives and Transferred Banking Powers to Suspicious Individuals: Inside Europe’s First National Security Seizure of a Chinese-Owned Chip-Maker

The Dutch ruling exposes internal warnings of “deep concern,” unexplained financial transfers to Chinese affiliates, and the firing of senior European executives at a key semiconductor manufacturer.

THE HAGUE — The Dutch government has released court documents detailing the explosive national-security seizure of a Chinese-owned semiconductor firm, revealing that CEO Zhang Xuezheng fired senior European executives, transferred treasury powers to individuals “with no clear role,” and conducted more than $100 million in suspect financial transactions with Chinese-linked entities.

The disclosures, issued by the Amsterdam Court of Appeal, explain the intervention announced by the Dutch government—its first use of the Goods Availability Act, a Cold War-era national-security law—to seize control of Nexperia, a chip manufacturer headquartered in Nijmegen. The filings show that Dutch regulators and judges acted in response to a pattern of governance failures, conflicts of interest involving Zhang’s Chinese affiliates, and escalating U.S. export-control measures targeting Nexperia’s Shanghai-listed parent, Wingtech Technology Co.

According to the court, tensions inside Nexperia intensified in early September 2025. On September 4, Zhang revoked the banking mandates of the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Group Treasurer, and a senior financial officer, and reassigned them to individuals lacking treasury experience, including one person who was not employed by Nexperia. The following day, the company’s Chief Legal Officer raised formal objections, warning that the new arrangements departed from accepted corporate-governance standards.

Between September 9 and 11, Zhang initiated the dismissal of the same Chief Legal Officer, together with the CFO and COO. The court found that the internal Works Council had not been consulted, contrary to Article 30 of the Dutch Works Council Act, and described the actions as bordering on recklessness for a company of Nexperia’s size.

The judgment also identifies a conflict of interest concerning Zhang’s ownership of WSS (Shanghai Jiangzin Technology Co., Ltd.), a wafer-fabrication company established in 2020. Under a 2023 Foundry Services Agreement, Nexperia outsourced part of its front-end chip production to the Shanghai firm. Nexperia’s wafer orders to WSS were valued at roughly $200 million—far above internal projections of $70–80 million—leading the court to conclude that Zhang may have allowed his interests in WSS to override those of Nexperia.

All shares in Nexperia Holding B.V. are owned by Yuching Holding Ltd., the records say, a Hong Kong company controlled by Zhang and his wife. Yuching in turn is wholly owned by Wingtech, whose shares are partly held—about 30 percent—by Chinese state-related investors. Zhang’s personal stake is roughly 15 percent.

The filings further show that Zhang resisted governance reforms agreed with the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy (EZK). In August 2024 Nexperia retained the Chinese law firm Fangda Partners to advise on these reforms, which included creation of a supervisory board and adoption of “reserved matters” requiring ministerial consent. Internal correspondence from August and September 2024 shows senior executives considering the proposed governance structure “not acceptable,” after which Zhang instructed legal staff to seek revisions that would limit Dutch oversight.

In an email dated 30 August 2024, the Wingtech legal officer wrote that “the current proposal of Supervisory Board requires quite some changes as the current one will be difficult to implement given the impact it will have on Nexperia company operation and also shareholder control.”

By December 2024 Wingtech had been placed on the U.S. Commerce Department’s Entity List, triggering trade restrictions. In June 2025 Dutch officials were informed that Washington planned to extend those restrictions under the “50 percent rule,” which applies export bans to subsidiaries half-owned by sanctioned entities. The court record notes that U.S. authorities viewed Nexperia’s leadership and governance posture as incompatible with any exemption from these measures.

U.S. officials from the Bureau of Industry and Security and the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation told Dutch diplomats that “no visible measures have been taken” to show separation from Chinese control and that “it is virtually certain the CEO will have to be replaced to qualify for an exception from the Entity List.” A follow-up note added: “For the United States, the CEO’s continuing role is the problem — his replacement is the signal of credible separation.”

On September 30, 2025, Dutch Economic Affairs Minister Vincent Karremans invoked the Goods Availability Act, issuing an order to preserve Nexperia’s operations and production means. The order cited recent signals of serious governance shortcomings and prohibited Nexperia and its subsidiaries from transferring assets, altering management, or restructuring for one year. The court later affirmed these measures as necessary and proportionate to safeguard continuity and protect Dutch technological capacity.