The former Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, has found his future occupation: from January 1, 2025, he will become an “external strategic advisor” to the Dutch company specializing in semiconductors ASML. Bruno Le Maire will be responsible for helping the group, which produces machines for the semiconductor industry, “to build a coalition to invest in the European ecosystem”, the company indicated to World.
The High Authority for Transparency in Public Life (HATVP) validated this reconversion on Thursday, December 19, subject to certain reservations. The former tenant of Bercy had in fact contacted this authority on November 5 with a request for an opinion on a project to modify the corporate purpose of his company, called 48 Jacob, used to give conferences, in order to also be able to ” deliver consultancy services”, specifies the HATVP.
This independent administrative authority is responsible in particular for ensuring that the exercise of a paid activity within a company is compatible with the functions of a member of the government exercised during the three years preceding the start of this activity.
Refrain from contact with the government
She considered that “the project envisaged by Mr. Le Maire is compatible with the public functions he has exercised” and “does not appear likely to cast doubt on the respect by the person concerned of the requirement of dignity, probity, integrity and prevention of conflicts of interest which were required of him in the exercise of his government functions.
However, the former tenant of Bercy will have to respect certain measures, in particular “refrain” from “any action, including representation of interests” with members of the government in office, or who were in office at the same time as him. . The same goes for the members of his cabinet, as long as they are still in the exercise of their public functions, we can still read.
“Strategic” recruitment
This recruitment comes as ASML does not hide its desire to leave the Netherlands (whose legislation is considered too strict in terms of the rights of foreign employees, of whom there are many at ASML) to perhaps open a semiconductor factory In France. The French state has also planned to spend 5 billion euros in the electronics and semiconductor sector as part of the France 2030 plan. The former Minister of the Economy could thus prove to be a valuable recruit for ASML.
Bruno Le Maire’s role as “external strategic advisor” should help strengthen ASML’s efforts to create a coalition for investments in the European semiconductor ecosystem and improve the global semiconductor value chain. “, explains in a press release the company, which recently changed its boss to the Frenchman Christophe Fouquet.
With a stock market valuation of nearly $300 billion, ASML positions itself as the largest technology company in Europe, supplying, among others, Intel and the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. At the heart of the conflict between China and the United States, which want to prevent it from selling its equipment to Beijing, ASML intends to strengthen the European ecosystem in this strategic sector: “ASML’s challenges are completely in line with the challenges of European reindustrialization which Bruno Le Maire took care of for seven years”, indicated a close friend of the former minister to the newspaper Les Echos.