Wingtech sues Nexperia leadership – invoking China's anti-sanctions law
The Nexperia dispute has taken a significant new turn. Parent company Wingtech Technology has filed a lawsuit against Nexperia and three members of its interim leadership team in a Chinese court, demanding CNY 8 billion (EUR 1 billion) in damages and calling for the reversal of Dutch governance measures it characterises as discriminatory.
The case was accepted by the Dongguan Intermediate People's Court in Guangdong province on May 22, according to a stock exchange filing by Wingtech. The defendants are Nexperia Holding B.V., Nexperia B.V., ITEC B.V., and three individuals by name: interim CEO Stefan Tilger, COO Achim Kempe and chief legal officer Ruben Lichtenberg.
Wingtech's legal basis is China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, under which it argues that the Dutch ministerial order issued in September 2025 and the Amsterdam Enterprise Chamber rulings constitute discriminatory restrictive measures against a Chinese company.
Wingtech is demanding that the defendants reverse the Dutch governance measures, or alternatively that Nexperia Holding transfer its full ownership of Nexperia B.V. to Wingtech free of charge. The CNY 8 billion damages claim – roughly EUR 1 billion – is described as provisional and subject to adjustment.
Nexperia responded the same day. In a statement published on May 22, the company detailed the disruptions it says have been caused by its China-based management since October 2025: refusal to accept wafer deliveries, reallocation of stocked products, disregard of global management instructions, refusal of payments to other Nexperia entities, misappropriation of corporate seals and the establishment of unauthorised bank accounts.
Nexperia described the new litigation as evidence that Wingtech "does not appear to be interested at all in reaching a solution that would be beneficial to all stakeholders."
Dispute timeline
The standoff originated in October 2025, when the Dutch government intervened to prevent Nexperia from shifting operations to China, suspending CEO Zhang Xuezheng and placing shareholder voting rights under independent administration. As Evertiq reported, the Chinese subsidiary subsequently declared operational independence while Nexperia's European headquarters halted wafer shipments, citing nonpayment.
In February 2026, the Amsterdam Enterprise Chamber ordered a formal investigation into Nexperia's governance, ruling that there were valid grounds to doubt proper management under the company's previous structure. By March 2026, Nexperia China had announced it had begun producing its own chips independently using 12-inch wafers.
Nexperia says it has maintained supply continuity to its global customer base through alternative supply chain solutions and is ramping capacity at its non-Chinese sites. It says deliveries are expected to gradually normalise over the course of 2026.
The lawsuit marks a new front in the dispute — moving it from Dutch courts and government proceedings into the Chinese legal system, and framing what began as a corporate governance conflict explicitly as a geopolitical one.
