U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent says there are many leaks in chip controls on China, questions NVIDIA's customer vetting and calls for accountability

U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent said in a CNBC "Squawk Box" interview on November 13 that there are many leaks in chip controls on China, and questioned whether NVIDIA knows its customers and whether it has strong measures to prevent chips from flowing to obvious shell companies, arguing that relevant people inside the company should be held accountable. He mentioned that Trump has made clear China should not obtain any NVIDIA chips above the H100, and that any leak would harm U.S. companies and give China an advantage in the AI race. Bessent also disclosed that the Treasury Department, the Department of War, the USTR and the State Department had for months supported adding Megaspeed to the entity list, but the decision rests with the Commerce Department's BIS. The interview also covered topics including his relocation to a military base at the Secret Service's request due to an Iranian death threat, the midterm elections and inflation, and Federal Reserve policy.