NYT Deal Book by Andrew Ross Sorkin
The White House’s new board seats
The Trump administration’s blessing of Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel is a potential watershed moment for the role of government in American industry.
While details are still being finalized, the reported conditions — including an American C.E.O., a U.S.-majority board and a “golden share” granting the U.S. government veto power over certain corporate functions and board appointments — are extraordinary for such a transaction. It goes far beyond the scope of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (known as CFIUS), which typically reviews deals for potential national security risks.
Key to this is the golden share. It would effectively allow Washington to inject itself into the fabric of a foreign-owned, yet strategically critical, American enterprise.