Semiconductor manufacturing equipment company AMEC's ​​founder, chairman and CEO Gerald Yin Zheyao has renounced his U.S. citizenship and restored his Chinese nationality, according to an annual report released on April 18.

Mr. Yin, a veteran of the semiconductor industry, has worked at Applied Research, Lam Research and Intel. AMEC’s 2022, 2021 and 2020 reports identify him as a U.S. citizen.

The SCMP newspaper commented that the change of nationality of Mr. Yin, 81 years old, is the latest sign of the increasingly branching semiconductor supply chain between China and the US in the context of the escalating trade war between the two powers.

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Founder, Chairman and CEO of semiconductor manufacturing equipment company AMEC, Gerald Yin Zheyao. Photo: AMEC

In October 2022, the US Department of Commerce issued restrictions, including banning "US persons" from participating in the "development or production" of chips at "certain semiconductor fabrication facilities located in China".

Last year, two American AMEC operating directors, Ni Tuqiang and Yang Wei, resigned from their “core technical staff” positions. At the time, AMEC said this had “no significant adverse impact” on the company’s research and development (R&D) progress, operations, or competitiveness.

A few months ago, the US Department of Defense removed AMEC from a list of companies accused of having ties to the Chinese military.

Mr. Yin founded AMEC in 2004 and built it into a major domestic supplier of semiconductor manufacturing tools. AMEC is also among the leading companies in China's drive for technological self-sufficiency.

Revenue in 2024 increased by 44.73% compared with 2023, exceeding 9 billion yuan. The average annual revenue growth rate in the past four years has been more than 40%.

However, net profit fell 9.52 percent to 1.61 billion yuan in the same period as R&D spending rose 94.31 percent to 2.45 billion yuan amid intensifying domestic competition.

AMEC said it has significantly accelerated the R&D process for new products from three to five years to less than two years. The company aims to close the gap in the supply of high-end chipmaking tools domestically, wanting to “catch up and surpass” competitors and lay the foundation for long-term growth.

(According to SCMP)

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/nha-sang-lap-cong-ty-chip-trung-quoc-quay-lung-voi-quoc-tich-my-2393239.html