Treasury secretary blames Commerce over Megaspeed export list delay

In short: The U.S. Treasury secretary said the Commerce Department did not move fast enough to blacklist a Singapore data center firm, and he warned Nvidia could face scrutiny if its chips were diverted to China.

What happened

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Commerce Department failed to add a Singaporean data center company called Megaspeed to the U.S. “Entity List.” The Entity List is a government blacklist that restricts U.S. companies from selling certain products to named foreign organizations.

Bessent said Treasury, the Defense Department, the State Department, and the U.S. Trade Representative had supported listing Megaspeed for months. He argued that Commerce controlled the decision and did not act.

Bessent also said there should be accountability at Nvidia if any employees did not do enough to stop chips from reaching unauthorized buyers. He questioned whether Nvidia properly checked Megaspeed and whether chips may have been sold to shell companies, meaning paper-only businesses that can be used to hide who the real buyer is.

Megaspeed is suspected of helping route Nvidia chips to China in violation of U.S. export controls. Export controls are rules that limit what can be sold abroad, especially items that could be used for military or surveillance purposes.

Why it matters

AI chips are in high demand, and U.S. rules try to keep the most advanced ones from reaching certain countries. This dispute matters because it shows how enforcement can break down if agencies do not act quickly, or if companies do not check customers carefully, like a store that sells a restricted item without confirming who is really buying it.

Source: NYTimes