Original title: Video | Why did Chinese companies acquire British chip maker Johnson suddenly “face change”?
Johnson changed his mind.
On July 7, local time, British Prime Minister Johnson announced that a “national security” review would be launched on the acquisition of the largest chip manufacturer in the UK by a Chinese company, overturning the previous statement of “non-intervention” in one fell swoop.
Anshi’s acquisition of NWF: a win-win business
On Monday, Wingtech Technology announced that the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Anshi Semiconductor, intends to acquire NWF, the largest chip manufacturer in the UK.
Founded in 1982, NWF is the largest semiconductor manufacturer in the UK. The chips produced by its factories are mainly used in the fields of automobiles, consumer, computers and wearable devices. According to British media speculation, the purchase price is about 63 million pounds (about 562 million yuan).
Special commentator Xiang Ligang said that this acquisition is a win-win transaction for both Anshi Semiconductor and NWF.
From the perspective of Nexperia, the acquisition of NWF will help alleviate the current shortage of chips, take the opportunity to expand production capacity and improve semiconductor layout. Moreover, the operating income, net profit, and total assets of the target NWF company account for a small proportion of the relevant financial data of the listed company, which does not have a significant impact on the company’s production and operation.
From the perspective of NWF, although NWF is the largest chip factory in the UK, its production capacity is not outstanding, and the production line is not advanced. Last year, under the severe damage of the European epidemic and Infineon’s cut orders, NWF lost 166 million yuan in net profit. . The acquisition can not only help NWF solve the problem of huge debts, but also retain more than 400 jobs in the factory.
Therefore, whether it is the Welsh government or the British government before this acquisition is “happy to see its success.” On July 6, the British government spokesperson made it clear that he refused to intervene in the acquisition, thinking that “it is not appropriate for the British government to intervene.”
In this regard, Zhao Chen, a researcher at the Institute of European Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that this also shows that the British government views this acquisition from the perspective of national interests and agrees that the acquisition is beneficial to the development of the British economy.
What is the sudden change in the attitude of the British government?
However, in just 24 hours, the attitude of the British government has taken a 180-degree turn.
On July 7, local time, British Prime Minister Johnson, after receiving a two-hour questioning from the parliamentary committee, said that he had asked the National Security Advisor to investigate the acquisition. “Semiconductors are very important to the UK. We must judge that NWF produces Does the chip of China have real intellectual property value and is beneficial to China, and whether there will be real security risks.”
Xiang Ligang believes that the chips produced by NWF are mainly automotive chips, etc., which are not cutting-edge technologies. The so-called acquisition of NWF threatens “national security” is completely untenable. Johnson’s attitude has changed dramatically, and the main reason is the pressure from some members of the British Conservative Party on the Chinese hawks.
For example, in recent days, Tom Tugendhart, head of the “China Research Group” of the British government and chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, has frequently appeared in the media, publicly exaggerating the threat of Chinese enterprise acquisitions that threaten Britain’s “national security.” “The acquisition of British wafer and semiconductor technology development and production equipment by a Chinese entity is a major economic and national security issue,” Tugendhart said.
In Zhao Chen’s view, these hawkish lawmakers have sinister political goals and ambitions to hype the “China Threat.” The “China Research Group” headed by Tugendhart, since its establishment in April last year, has spared no effort to “anti-China” as its mission, repeatedly manipulating and discrediting China on a number of issues such as the epidemic, 5G, Xinjiang, and Hong Kong. , Hoping to reproduce the “brilliant record” of the “Brexit Group”.
That year, in the lower house of the British Parliament, the “Brexit Group” composed of more than 20 Conservative MPs continuously put pressure on the then British Prime Minister Cameron to make a decision to hold a referendum on Brexit. In the end, the UK officially “Brexit” on January 31 last year, ending its 47-year EU membership.
Such “success” greatly encouraged British Conservative Party MPs. Therefore, they set up a “China Research Group” hoping to follow the law and realize their political ambitions by pointing fingers at China issues.
Among the “teams” under pressure, there is no lack of the United States to fuel the flames. According to British media reports, members of the National Security Committee of the US Congress also questioned the acquisition of NWF by Chinese companies and put pressure on the British government. The US media took the opportunity to repeatedly report on this matter, putting pressure on the British public opinion.
What will happen to the acquisition case?
So, can this acquisition proceed smoothly?
According to the “National Security and Investment Act” promulgated by the British government in April this year, the British government can extensively intervene in commercial transactions when it “constitutes an unacceptable risk to British national security.” British officials will have up to five years to review the transaction. Once the transaction is judged to be a threat, the British government has the right to cancel the transaction.
Zhao Chen said that the involvement of the British government may make the acquisition variable, but whether the transaction stops depends on the determination of the British government. “These hawks are from the British ruling Conservative Party, and they are also the’heritors’ of Johnson’s rise to power. Johnson’s entanglement in attitude also reflects his dilemma to a certain extent.”
It is worth noting that in the face of questioning, Johnson also warned lawmakers that he hoped that the UK would remain open to Chinese investment. “I don’t want the’anti-China sentiment’ to cause the UK to expel every Chinese investment in the UK. This is economically reckless.”
This statement is similar to the statement made by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer Rich Sunak a few days ago. In his latest City of London plan, he called on the UK to strengthen trade relations with China. “China and the UK need a mature and Balanced relationship”.
Facing the two sides of Britain’s attitude towards China, Zhao Chen reminded that on the one hand, we need to be prepared in terms of mentality and policies; on the other hand, we can also strengthen economic and trade cooperation with Europe through ties with France and Germany. And Chinese companies also need to produce corresponding evidence and legal weapons to protect their legitimate rights and interests.
As a party to Wingtech, its related staff responded to the media on the 7th that it is not clear about the matters reviewed by the British government. The lawyers have done a risk assessment before and believe that government intervention is not required.
(Look at Knews reporter Yang Zhen)
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