U.S. probes Apex Logistics for alleged Nvidia chip smuggling to China

U.S. probes Apex Logistics for alleged Nvidia chip smuggling to China

Thu, August 27, 2026 at 3:16 PM GMT+3 2 min read

• NVDA -1.59%
• SMCI -2.78%

U.S. authorities are investigating Singapore-based Apex Logistics, a unit of Swiss shipping giant Kuehne+Nagel, for allegedly helping smuggle Nvidia AI chips to China in violation of U.S. export controls, according to Bloomberg.

The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security is examining 47 Apex shipments from 2024, according to Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources. Investigators are focused on whether Apex transported servers made by Super Micro Computer — which contain Nvidia chips — from the U.S. to destinations in Southeast Asia, with the hardware ultimately reaching China by way of Hong Kong. It is unclear how many servers were contained across those shipments.

According to a person familiar with Apex's response, two former employees at the company applied a shipping code to the relevant consignments that designated the hardware as exempt from U.S. export controls. Both individuals departed the company not long after Apex was first notified of the BIS investigation. Falsifying shipping records has appeared repeatedly across chip smuggling prosecutions, with defendants in other proceedings accused of misidentifying restricted Nvidia equipment as ordinary, unrestricted goods.

In a statement, Apex acknowledged U.S. concern over "a small number of shipments that Apex handled in 2024 and which may have involved materials and equipment which were ultimately forwarded to prohibited locations," adding that it is fully cooperating and committed to compliance with all applicable regulations. The Swiss parent company acknowledged that Apex is cooperating with investigators while noting that Kuehne+Nagel itself "has not been contacted by the authorities." Apex has introduced enhanced compliance procedures since the investigation began.

Kuehne+Nagel stock fell as much as 4.2% in European trading on Thursday, its largest intraday drop in more than three months.

The U.S. has barred the sale of advanced Nvidia AI chips to China since 2022, citing concerns the technology could benefit Beijing's military. Those rules nevertheless spawned an illicit parallel market that U.S. legal proceedings allege has funneled billions of dollars in Nvidia chips into the country.

The Apex case is part of a broader enforcement push. Taiwan prosecutors charged nine people — including former Nvidia and Super Micro employees — with facilitating the shipment of dozens of advanced AI servers to China through fraudulent documentation. A separate U.S. case charged Super Micro co-founder Yih-Shyan "Wally" Liaw and two others in March with diverting roughly $2.5 billion in Nvidia-equipped servers to China through a Southeast Asian intermediary.

Neither Nvidia nor Super Micro has been accused of wrongdoing in connection with the Apex probe. The Apex investigation may result in the first U.S. action against a transportation company for alleged participation in the illegal semiconductor trade.