Trump blocks chips deal, cites security, China-related concerns

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON, Jan 2 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump on Friday blocked U.S. photonics firm HieFo Corp’s $3 million acquisition of assets from New Jersey-based aerospace and defense specialist Emcore, citing concerns about national security and China.

In an order issued by the White House, Trump said HieFo was “controlled by a national of the People’s Republic of China” and that its acquisition of Emcore’s businesses in 2024 led the president to believe “he may take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States.”

The resolution did not name the person or detail Trump’s concerns.

“The transaction is hereby prohibited,” Trump said, ordering HieFo to “divest all interests and interests in Emcore Assets, wherever located” within 180 days.

In its statement following Trump’s instruction, the Treasury Department said that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States had identified a national security risk in its investigation into the agreement. There was no national security risk mentioned in the statement.

HieFo and Emcore could not immediately be reached for comment and did not post any reaction on their websites as of late Friday.

Emcore, which was publicly traded at the time of the deal and was later privatized, said it was buying HieFo’s chip business and “indium phosphide wafer manufacturing operations” for $2.92 million.

HieFo said at the time that it was co-founded by Genzao Zhang, Emcore’s former vice president of engineering, and Harry Moore, whose LinkedIn profile describes himself as a former “senior sales manager” at Emcore.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by William Mallard)