Former French Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, attends a handover ceremony in Paris
Dutch semiconductor production machine maker ASML has appointed former French Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire to advise the group’s board of directors, a spokesperson said on Thursday.
The appointment is part of the group’s efforts to strengthen the European semiconductor industry through investment, the company said. The appointment of Bruno Le Maire will take effect on January 1.
The High Authority for the Transparency of Public Life (HATVP) issued its opinion on Thursday in which it “considers that the project envisaged by Mr. Le Maire is compatible with the public functions he has exercised, subject to respecting certain measures of precaution.”
Bruno Le Maire must therefore refrain from approaching members of the government or his cabinet in office at the same time as him as long as they occupy public functions, as well as services over which he had authority.
Bruno Le Maire, who was Minister of the Economy under the presidency of Emmanuel Macron between May 2017 and September 2024, requested the HATVP for an opinion on “his plan to modify the corporate purpose” of his company 48 Jacob “for the purpose of providing consulting services” to ASML.
(Reporting by Toby Sterling and Florence Loève, editing by Sophie Louet)
