Trump reached an agreement with Intel to purchase the 10% that belonged to the Chinese.

The United States government, under President Donald Trump,announced on Friday the acquisition of a 10% stake in Intel. The news triggered an immediate 5.5% increase in the company's share price on the NASDAQ index.

The official announcement was made after the market closed by Intel and Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick. The decision was finalized after a meeting between Trump and Intel's new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, earlier this month.

President Trump had requested Tan's resignation on August 7, due to his investments in companies linked to the Chinese military. However, after the personal meeting, Trump changed his mind and they reached an agreement over the Chinese percentage in the semiconductor company.

According to Trump in the Oval Office: "He came, we talked for a while, and I liked him a lot. I said:  'I think it would be good for the United States to have 10% of Intel'. He agreed, and we made it happen. It's a great deal for them." Trump joked that Tan "came in wanting to keep his job and ended up giving us 10 billion dollars".

The agreement stipulates that the U.S. government will receive 433.3 million non-voting shares at a price of USD 20.47 per share, which represents a significant discount compared to the closing price of USD 24.80. That difference already means a potential gain of USD 1.9 billion on paper.

The financing of the USD 8.9 billion needed for the purchase will come from two main sources: USD 5.7 billion from the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 (a law passed during the administration of Joe Biden, but whose funds had not yet been distributed) and USD 3.2 billion that Intel received in 2024 as part of the Secure Enclave program. Adding the funds previously delivered to Intel under the CHIPS Act, the total government investment in the company amounts to USD 11.1 billion.

Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, described the agreement as "fair for Intel and fair for the American people". In a post on X, he stated that the deal "strengthens American leadership in semiconductors, which will grow our economy and ensure our technological advantage".

Lip-Bu Tan, who took over as Intel's CEO in March, faces the challenge of reversing the company's finances, which last year recorded a loss of USD 18.8 billion, the first since 1986. In a statement, Tan thanked Trump for his trust and pledged to work to strengthen the technological and manufacturing leadership of the United States.

The U.S. investment comes shortly after Intel received a USD 2 billion financial bailout from the Japanese group SoftBank, which was also interpreted as a show of support for the company's new leadership and its recovery strategy.

During his announcement, Trump noted that Intel "had fallen behind", recalling that it was once the most powerful chip company in the world before moving part of its production abroad, especially to Taiwan.