China TSMC Rival HSMC Runs Out of Cash, Ex-CEO Says

By Alan Patterson, EETimes (November 20, 2020)

TAIPEI — Wuhan Hongxin Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (HSMC) is the latest casualty in the technology war between China and the United States.

The debt-ridden company is insolvent, according to the company’s ex-CEO.

“Investors ran short of cash,” ex-CEO Chiang Shang-yi, told EE Times in a message via LinkedIn. “I got caught by surprise. It’s over now, and I’m back home in California.” Chiang, the former head of R&D at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), didn’t elaborate.

The municipal government of Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, has taken over the company. HSMC is under the control of the state assets supervision and administration commission for the Dongxihu district government in Wuhan, the South China Morning Post reported.

HSMC’s $20 billion chip plant ran afoul of the coronavirus outbreak as well as funding shortages, the report said.

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