Singapore Says Supermicro’s Cooperation in Megaspeed Probe Was Limited, Keeps Investigations Open
Key Facts
Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs said Supermicro provided limited cooperation in the authorities’ investigation into Megaspeed, while investigations involving the company and six people remain ongoing. In a statement issued on 12 November 2026, the ministry said the Singapore investigation concerns suspected inaccuracies in declarations related to server purchases and associated offenses. The statement sets the government’s position against the company’s response, which said Megaspeed was not its customer and that it had responded to requests from Singaporean authorities. The case dates to an independent investigation launched by Singapore police and customs in February 2025 that covered companies and officials, including Megaspeed. The ministry said the servers were transferred through Singapore to Malaysia, while investigators are examining whether they were later routed elsewhere in violation of the declarations submitted.
Singapore defined the investigation’s scope as the possibility of inaccurate information being provided about server purchases and related offenses, and did not describe the case as an espionage investigation involving Alice Huang. The ministry said Huang, a Hong Kong resident who was Megaspeed’s chief executive, chairwoman and one of its key officials, was not a resident of Singapore and was not under investigation for espionage. Police and customs launched their independent investigation in February 2025 into several companies and key officials. The ministry said the physical servers were purchased by companies under investigation and then exported through Singapore to Malaysia without entering the Singapore market. Investigators are focused on determining whether the servers subsequently took other routes that would conflict with what was declared to Singaporean authorities.
The ministry said Singapore raised the issue of Supermicro’s cooperation with U.S. authorities at a meeting on 7 July 2025 and requested assistance in obtaining the company’s cooperation. Since September 2025, police have repeated their requests to the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation on several occasions. According to the ministry’s statement, by 12 November 2026 Singapore had received only limited information or assistance relating to the company. That represents the Singaporean authorities’ position on the company’s response to investigation requests, while the company gave a different account of its dealings with the relevant authorities. Supermicro told Fortune magazine it had been responsive to inquiries, fully cooperated with U.S. and Taiwanese officials, voluntarily provided information and responded to requests from Singaporean authorities through the date of its statement.
Supermicro denied a customer relationship between the two parties, saying Megaspeed “was never its customer.” The company says it cooperated with U.S. and Taiwanese officials, voluntarily provided information and responded to Singapore’s requests. Fortune also quoted the company as saying it conducted an internal investigation and found no evidence that current senior management members knew of the alleged conspiracy, and that it considers itself a victim of the scheme. The denial of a business relationship is separate from the issue of cooperation with investigating authorities: the former concerns Megaspeed’s status in relation to the company, while the latter concerns information requests that Singapore said it had sent. In its statement, the ministry did not offer an account matching the company’s assertion that it had fully cooperated, instead saying what it received was limited.
Singapore said police concluded in February 2026, after consulting the Attorney-General’s Chambers, that there was insufficient evidence to establish that Huang had committed offenses related to the inaccurate declarations under investigation. In a separate matter, authorities concluded that she had knowingly provided inaccurate information to reduce her role, issued her a stern warning and barred her from re-entering Singapore. The ministry said the police investigation into Megaspeed and six other people remained ongoing on 12 November 2026. In the broader case, authorities said they charged four individuals and four companies in court between February 2025 and July 2026 with offenses that included fraud involving false declarations about server purchases. The ministry added that these offenses can carry prison sentences of up to 20 years for each violation.
On jurisdiction, Singapore said it does not enforce other countries’ unilateral export controls, but expects companies operating there to observe those rules in their international activities and acts when there is evidence of a violation of local law. The ministry added that the investigation was not opened at the request of another country or sovereign entity. Authorities learned of U.S. interest in Megaspeed and Huang only after the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security conducted a voluntary post-shipment verification at Megaspeed on 24 June 2025, with Huang present. This background illustrates how Singapore distinguished between enforcing its laws on declarations and local activities and export controls imposed by other governments. The servers’ route after leaving Singapore remains among the questions authorities said they are investigating.
EL7 daily closing data showed Super Micro shares closed at $26.99 on 12 November, then at $26.87 on 13 November 2026. The two closes came during a week in which the stock fell about 4%, according to Fortune. Investing.com also cited Reuters as reporting that the stock fell 11% in Thursday’s session on 12 November amid a sell-off that the report linked to allegations of exporting artificial intelligence chips to China. These moves are dated to their respective sessions, while the daily close alone does not detail the stock’s intraday movement on 13 November. On the U.S. side, the Associated Press said the Justice Department’s Homeland Security division is investigating whether Megaspeed violated export-control laws, with Alice Huang also included in the scrutiny.
The discussion in Washington extends to placing Megaspeed on the export-control list and oversight of transfers of advanced artificial intelligence chips. The Associated Press quoted Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as saying the Treasury, State and Defense departments and the U.S. Trade Representative had supported the listing for months, but said the decision rests with the Commerce Department. Bessent added: “The Commerce Department makes the decision, and you should ask it about its internal procedures,” noting that his deputy had been pushing in that direction for months. The Senate version of the defense bill also includes, according to the agency, powers for Congress to review licenses to sell advanced artificial intelligence chips to China, and for the Commerce Department to track chips and prevent their diversion to unauthorized areas. The House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman requested a hearing on 2 December on computer-chip smuggling and reported involvement by private companies in export-control policies and investigations.