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sanctions from Biden did more damage
than all four years of performative sanc-
tioning under Trump.”

Expanded sanctions
Among the sanctions, foreign businesses
are prevented from sending equipment for
leading-edge processors or advanced tech-
nology to China. While this sanction is not
new, the Biden administration has expand-
ed and toughened it.

In addition, any U.S. citizen working in
China’s semiconductor industry risks their
U.S. citizenship by continuing to work
there.

The sanctions are formalized by the Com-
merce Department’s Bureau of Industry
and Security, which added 30 semiconduc-
tor (fabs, fabless companies and design-
ers) to the prohibited list.

Even giant Samsung and Taiwan Semicon-
ductor Co. are prohibited from doing busi-
ness with China.

The Big Boys
Earlier we noted that the DRAM semi-
conductor business is controlled by three
companies — Samsung, SK hynix and
Micron, with smaller Nanya Technologies of
Taiwan in fourth place.

These companies dominate the DRAM sup-
ply. The picture with NAND is much the
same except that Japan’s Kloxia has cap-
tured enough market share to propel it to
second place.

Let’s view the DRAM leaders in closeup.
Samsung is Korea’s largest chaebol (family
owned conglomerate) that wields more

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