Wingtech Technology Co., Ltd. (闻泰科技) founder Zhang Xuezheng likely did not anticipate that in less than a year after stepping back from the limelight, the company would find itself in such a precarious position.
On October 19, Nexperia China, a subsidiary of Wingtech, issued a letter to all employees stating that operations and employee salaries and benefits in China are running normally. The letter assured employees that the company’s production and operations continue smoothly, with various activities being managed in an orderly manner. The board and management are committed to ensuring the company's normal operations and will not allow external forces to interfere with operations or harm employee interests. Colleagues within the Nexperia domestic team have established a labor relationship with the domestic company, and wages, bonuses, and other benefits will continue to be paid by the domestic entity, rather than the Dutch parent company.
Previously, on October 18, Wingtech addressed concerns regarding the complete suspension of system access for employees of its subsidiary, Nexperia Semiconductor (China). They indicated that on the morning of October 17, the accounts of Nexperia China’s team were locked for undisclosed reasons, although some access has since been restored. Given the emergency situation, there was a possibility of the European system shutting down funds, forcing the Chinese division to take independent action to strengthen domestic supply chain connections and ensure supply to local customers.
On October 12, Wingtech announced that the Dutch government issued an order on September 30 to freeze the operations of its subsidiary Nexperia Semiconductor, requiring adjustments to assets, intellectual property, and more for a period of one year.
In terms of market performance, since September 30, Wingtech's stock price has steadily declined, recently showing a slight recovery but still reflecting a cumulative drop of over 20%. As of October 17, Wingtech's stock closed up over 4%, with shares priced at 38.5 yuan, resulting in a market capitalization of 47.9 billion yuan.
Unavoidable Risks On September 30, a Dutch enterprise court made a ruling that immediately implemented several urgent measures. These included suspending Zhang Xuezheng’s role as CEO and appointing an independent foreign individual nominated by the court as a non-executive director, who possesses decisive voting rights and can represent the company independently. Additionally, Wingtech's holdings in Nexperia Semiconductor, held through Hong Kong's Yu Cheng Holdings, has been entrusted to a designated independent third party for management purposes.
As a result, Wingtech temporarily lost governance and voting rights over Nexperia, but its rights to economic benefits as a shareholder remain unaffected. In response, Wingtech stated that the Dutch government’s decision to freeze the global operations of Nexperia based on unfounded "national security" claims represents an excessive intervention rooted in geopolitical bias, rather than a factual risk assessment. This action severely violates the EU's advocacy for market economy, fair competition, and international trade rules, and the company strongly protests against such discriminatory treatment of Chinese enterprises.
Although outwardly a legal confrontation with the Dutch government, the real pressure Wingtech faces comes from the United States. On September 29, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced new export control regulations targeting subsidiaries with over 50% ownership included in the U.S. 'Entity List'. As Wingtech fully owns Nexperia Semiconductor, it has undoubtedly become a target of this new round of unfounded sanctions.
On October 16, the China Semiconductor Industry Association expressed its opposition to local Dutch authorities’ interference in the operations of Wingtech's subsidiary Nexperia Semiconductor. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, He Yongqian, stated that China firmly opposes the Netherlands’ broad interpretation of “national security,” which directly interferes with enterprise internal affairs through administrative means. This action not only contravenes contractual spirit and market principles but will also seriously damage the business environment in the Netherlands, harming both parties.
In 2017, a consortium led by Jian Guang Capital acquired Nexperia Semiconductor, originally part of NXP’s standardized product division. Subsequently, from 2018 to 2020, Wingtech completated the acquisition of 100% equity in Nexperia Semiconductor through cash transactions and A-share issuance.
In 2024, due to being included on the 'Entity List', Wingtech's ODM/OEM business faced significant setbacks in global supply chains and customer acquisitions. In the first half of 2025, Wingtech's ODM/OEM business generated revenue of 17.485 billion yuan but incurred cumulative losses of 685 million yuan. Consequently, Wingtech chose to divest its ODM/OEM business for about 4.389 billion yuan to companies including Luxshare Precision and its affiliates.
Moreover, Wingtech conducted major personnel adjustments. Zhang Xuezheng's sister, Zhang Qiuhong, resigned from both Chairman and President positions, along with three key executives from the ODM/OEM division. The company also selected executives from Nexperia Semiconductor, such as Shen Xinjia, Yang Mu, and Zhuang Wei, to take over operational decision-making.
Thus, Wingtech transitioned from a dual-industry approach to a complete focus on the semiconductor industry, effectively becoming a controlling entity for Nexperia Semiconductor. Unfortunately, this equity arrangement has once again fallen under the constraint of the U.S. Department of Commerce's new rules.
Adverse Signs In fact, the risks of Nexperia Semiconductor being independent from Wingtech's control have shown early signs since 2022.
In 2021, the “chip shortage” crisis in the automotive sector began to spread, driving prices of automotive-grade chips to soar. Along with the electrification trend in the automobile industry, this presented business opportunities for Wingtech and Zhang Xuezheng, as they had just completed the acquisition of Nexperia Semiconductor.
Due to Nexperia Semiconductor's roots in Philips and NXP, it naturally possessed capabilities to meet stringent global automotive industry standards. Its products largely comply with automotive certifications like AEC-Q101, and all wafer fabs have received IATF 16949 quality management system certification, possessing inherent conditions to support automotive-grade chip technology production capacity.
In July 2021, Nexperia Semiconductor completed the acquisition of UK-based automotive-grade chip manufacturer Newport Wafer Fab (NWF), intending to enhance its IDM production capacity for automotive-grade IGBTs and MOSFETs, and strengthen research and development for high-voltage power devices and analog ICs aimed at the global market.
However, this move immediately faced intervention from UK authorities. In January 2022, the UK enacted the National Security and Investment Act, asserting retrospective rights over the completed NWF acquisition and requiring Nexperia Semiconductor to divest at least 86% of its shares in NWF.
Nexperia Semiconductor expressed shock and opposition, and filed an appeal. Subsequently, it engaged in over a year of back-and-forth reviews and negotiations with UK authorities, proposing to avoid sensitive semiconductor operations and allowing government co-management, but ultimately to no avail. In November 2023, Nexperia Semiconductor reached an agreement with Vishay to sell NWF for $177 million, with the transaction expected to complete in 2024. This move indicated that Nexperia Semiconductor had become a target for restrictions on investment by certain countries against Chinese enterprises.
Allegations Against Foreign Executives In fact, Wingtech has always attached great importance to the independent operation of overseas acquisition entities. Under Zhang Xuezheng's leadership, Nexperia Semiconductor, including its acquisition of NWF, has maintained a relatively independent operating status, with major transactions executed by foreign executives.
However, the recent freezing actions against Nexperia Semiconductor have been supported by senior executives, involving three core foreign executives: Dutch Chief Legal Officer Ruben Lichtenberg, German Chief Financial Officer Stefan Tilger, and German Chief Operating Officer Achim Kempe. They initiated actions jointly just one day after the Dutch government issued a ministerial directive, demanding the suspension of the Chinese CEO's position and the equity custody.
According to official biographies, Ruben Lichtenberg, the Chief Legal Officer who spearheaded this incident, leads the global legal and IP team. In the early stages of his career, he practiced law and held senior legal positions at several international companies including Royal Haskoning, MOC Group, and Vesta Terminals.
Among the other two executives, CFO Stefan Tilger is a veteran from Philips and NXP, having joined Nexperia Semiconductor with its spin-off in 2017, and COO Achim Kempe oversees all global operations, managing the business and manufacturing activities of six factories.
Notably, this incident coincided with prior personnel adjustments within Wingtech. Currently, among Wingtech's executives, Shen Xinjia acts as interim president while also being Chief Administrative Officer of Nexperia Semiconductor, Yang Mu serves as Senior Strategy Director at Nexperia Semiconductor, and Zhuang Wei acts as Senior Director of Global Human Resources / CEO’s HR Assistant at Nexperia Semiconductor. Their roles do not overlap with the aforementioned foreign executives, yet they have effectively established practical control over the managerial structure.
As a result, the actions of foreign executives have been interpreted by some market participants as an internal power struggle within Nexperia. The “defection” of these three foreign executives has also been viewed as a scenario that transcends normal legal logic.