Trump: Intel agreed to sell 10% stake to U.S. government

Zoom in: The U.S. government will invest a total of $11.1 billion into Intel for a 9.9% stake, inclusive of $5.7 billion of CHIPS Act grants that had been awarded but not yet paid to the company.

• Those grants were originally designed to be non-dilutive, but now will be converted into equity at $20.47 per share. Intel stock closed today at $24.80, but was trading below $20 earlier this month.
• The $11.1 billion total also includes $2.2 billion of CHIPS Act grants that Intel already received, plus $3.2 billion previously awarded via the Secure Enclave program.
• The U.S. government will have no board representation with Intel, or other governance or information rights. It also agreed to vote with the company's board on most matters requiring shareholder approval.

What to watch: If the White House puts any pressure on Big Tech to utilize Intel's floundering foundry business.

• Trump didn't comment on that, nor was he asked, although it's something that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently poured cold water on.

The bottom line: Questions remains about how the CHIPS Act funds would be converted, as it wasn't contemplated by the original legislation, or if other recipients also will be asked to sell equity stakes to the U.S.