Blank Rome’s national security and international trade attorneys were retained by HieFo Corporation (“HieFo” or the “Company”) to advise on the Presidentially ordered divestment following an extensive review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS”). On January 2, 2026, after nearly a year of CFIUS consideration, the President issued an Order requiring the divestment of all non‑U.S. shareholder interests in HieFo.
HieFo turned to Blank Rome’s CFIUS attorneys to navigate the Order and the complex divestment process, including compliance with the operational and governance restrictions imposed alongside the divestment mandate. Drawing on decades of experience before CFIUS, including matters involving mitigation agreements and prior divestiture requirements, Blank Rome worked closely with HieFo’s Board of Directors and Security Officer to implement the divestment and ensure ongoing compliance with the President’s Order and applicable CFIUS mitigation requirements.
On March 3, 2026, HieFo was acquired by Semtech Corporation for $34 million, which is publicly traded on the NASDAQ Exchange (Nasdaq: SMTC). Other terms of the transaction are confidential.
By way of background, HieFo was formed in April 2024 to acquire certain assets of Emcore. Shortly thereafter, CFIUS requested that the Company submit a voluntary notice to assess potential national security risks associated with the transaction. Following its review of the notice, submitted in late 2024 and early 2025, CFIUS determined that adequate mitigation was not available and required the divestment of non‑U.S. shareholder interests. After evaluating all available alternatives, HieFo engaged Blank Rome to guide the Company through the required compliance measures and to facilitate the divestment as mandated by the President’s Order.
The Blank Rome team was led by Kenneth J. Nunnenkamp, and included Anthony Rapa and Patrick F. Collins.