Wingtech to fight court order over Nexperia management

Wingtech, the Chinese owner of Nijmegen-based chipmaker Nexperia, plans to contest a recent ruling by the Enterprise Chamber (Ondernemingskamer) in Amsterdam. The court handles disputes over how companies are run.

The court barred Wingtech from interfering in Nexperia's day-to-day management. It also ordered the parent company to withdraw certain claims it has brought before a Chinese court.

The court took new measures last week against Wingtech and Zhang. They may no longer undermine earlier court rulings. If they do, fines can reach €300m. Wingtech says the ruling infringes shareholders' rights, among other things, and wants to challenge the decision, according to a stock exchange filing by the company.

The conflict over Nexperia began more than a year ago, when the Dutch government temporarily intervened at the chipmaker. The dispute has since become international.

At about the same time, European directors of Nexperia brought a court case against Wingtech founder and chief executive Zhang Xuezheng. He was then suspended as head of Nexperia over suspicions of mismanagement.

The Enterprise Chamber also placed Wingtech's shares in Nexperia under independent management. Wingtech lost control of the company as a result, although it still holds a majority stake. The court ruled that Wingtech keeps obstructing Nexperia's operations. It found that the Chinese company threatened business partners with legal action if they kept doing business with the Nijmegen chipmaker. It also found that Wingtech tried to have the Dutch proceedings ended through a Chinese court. According to the Enterprise Chamber, this harms Nexperia's interests.