ASML: semiconductor equipment and export licensing

Names and abbreviations on this page

ASML — ASML (company name). A Dutch company supplying machines used to manufacture microchips.

SMT — Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology. In the Carl Zeiss SMT context, ZEISS’s semiconductor-technology business, including optical systems used in chip production; SMT has other meanings in other contexts.

EU — European Union. A union of European member states with shared institutions and laws in specified areas.

TSMC — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited. A company that manufactures semiconductor chips for customers.

SEC — United States Securities and Exchange Commission. United States securities-market regulator.

Scale or institutional role

Total net sales: €32.667 billion

Period: Year ended December 31, 2025

ASML reported total net sales; rounded from €32,667 million in its full-year results. [1]

Scale and supply role

ASML reported €32.667 billion of total net sales for 2025, including €8.193 billion from services and field options. Its lithography equipment supports semiconductor patterning, placing it upstream of chip factories. Equipment sales, maintenance revenue and order backlog are different measures and should not be combined into a single revenue number. [1]

Ownership and governance

ASML is publicly listed. Its major-shareholder disclosure, based on filings as of February 18, 2026, lists BlackRock at 6.83% and Capital Research and Management at 5.09%. These are reported holdings, not evidence that the asset managers own every underlying investment for themselves or coordinate all corporate decisions. [2]

Cross-border supplier link

The 2025 annual report describes the strategic relationship with Germany’s Carl Zeiss SMT, including financial support, supply arrangements and a 24.9% interest in its holding company. This makes the dependence concrete: advanced equipment requires specialist inputs, with investment and supply contracts connecting the firms. A minority interest and a commercial alliance are distinct relationships. [3]

Trade and public policy

Dutch government announcements explain licensing requirements for specified advanced manufacturing equipment, including an expansion covering selected deep-ultraviolet lithography technology in September 2024. A further expansion took effect in April 2025. The government describes case-by-case authorization for covered exports outside the EU, not a blanket ban on all equipment. [4] [5]

Scrutiny and interpretation

Questions to investigate include licensing transparency, customer access and resilience when an essential supplier is concentrated. This is an analysis of commercial interdependence and state security policy. It does not show that customers, shareholders and regulators pursue one shared political objective.

Related learning

TSMC: contract chip manufacturing

Samsung Electronics: components and finished devices

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala: trade rules & international cooperation

How size and influence are compared

Follow the money and the type of relationship

External Resources