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Trump to review outbound regime, export controls, ICTS rules, more
The Outbound Investment Security Program is now effective, but don’t get too attached to it. According to a Presidential trade memorandum released in January, the Trump administration is now reviewing the outbound regime and other policies to determine whether they should be “modified or rescinded.”

Canada’s “Critical and Emerging Technology” list differs from U.S.
Last week, the Canadian government unveiled a list of eleven broad technology areas that the country considers sensitive from an intelligence and national security perspective. The list includes many of the same capabilities on the U.S. list of Critical and Emerging Technologies. But not all. Details inside.

Former head of CFIUS Paul Rosen to join law firm as natsec partner
Well that didn’t take long. As many readers have already heard, former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Investment Security Paul Rosen has decamped for Latham & Watkins, where he’ll focus on CFIUS matters, outbound reviews and more. Stay tuned for an exclusive interview with Rosen.

Senators float bill preventing land purchase near military installations
A group of U.S. Senators have floated a bill that would expand CFIUS’s jurisdiction around military installations. Among other things, the bill would include real estate investments by foreign adversaries that are within 50 miles of certain military locations, like training routes. Details inside.

Three Senators float restrictive bill on U.S. land acquisition by Chinese
Three U.S. Senators have reintroduced legislation would prevent any Chinese individual or business with ties to the Chinese Communist Party from owning American land. The proposal echoes recent law in Florida, the enforcement of which was later prohibited by a U.S. Court of Appeals. Details inside.

This one goes to 11; another attempt to put Agriculture Sec. on CFIUS
For the eleventh time (at least by our count), Congressional leaders have floated a bill that would add the Secretary of Agriculture to CFIUS. The updated version of The FARM Act would also designate agricultural supply chains as critical infrastructure and critical tech. Details inside.

Outbound investments dating back to 2021 are getting reviewed in EU
Last week, the European Commission urged its member states to scrutinize outbound investments in non-EU countries, and to do so for the same technologies impacted by the U.S. outbound regime: semiconductors, quantum and AI. Details and related EU documents are inside.

CFIUS hacker sanctioned by U.S. along with Chinese cyber company
As we covered last week, CFIUS and Treasury’s sanctions office were reportedly breached as part of a hacking incident. Now, Treasury has imposed sanctions on an alleged hacker and cybersecurity company, accusing them of a series of hacks at U.S. telecom companies and the breach at Treasury.

Now accepting nominations for our annual list of “Top Advisors 2025”
It’s that time of year again! We’re now taking nominations for our 2025 “Top Advisors” list, which includes experts who provide advice and counsel regarding national-security reviews of foreign investments in the U.S. and abroad. Nominations are due by Feb. 14, 2025. Get ’em in now, folks!

Compliance reminder: DoJ’s bulk sensitive personal data rule issued
In case this slipped by you during the holiday season, the Department of Justice has issued its final rule regarding bulk sensitive personal data. The final rule will be effective in early April, and experts say it could have “wide-ranging implications” for U.S. companies across a number of industries.

List of Chinese military companies operating in U.S. updated by DOD
Right after the new year, the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense published an update to its list of Chinese military companies, adding more than 100 entities. The latest update add companies that Congressional leaders had pressured the DOD to include, including CATL. Details, list inside.

It’s “Puh FACK uh”: Exploring a misunderstood rule with the DoJ
Right before the new year, we sat down with the Department of Justice’s Eric Johnson to discuss the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (we credit him for cracking the acronym’s pronunciation). According to Johnson, PAFACA is more than “the TikTok ban.”

Templates, guidance on outbound program (now effective) get posted
Right before the holidays, the Treasury Department published answers to thirty questions about the outbound investment security program. The document provides helpful examples of covered transactions, and was supplemented by a number of notification templates. Details, documents inside.

Predicting the implications of the decision to block sale of U.S. Steel
As most Foreign Investment Watch readers know by now, President Biden has blocked Japanese steelmaker Nippon from acquiring U.S. Steel. Inside, we discuss with experts the impact of the decision for foreign investment reviews, including the implications for excepted foreign states.

Crowdsourced Trump II predictions on CFIUS, sanctions, tariffs, more
Our readers are wicked smaht. So we decided to get their predictions on the next Administration’s approach to sanctions, tariffs, export controls, CFIUS, the outbound regime and more. Whether the next Treasury Secretary is Scott Bessent or someone else, our readers were remarkably aligned.

Getting ready for the bulk sensitive data rule; practical considerations
As the DoJ’s new data security regime is being finalized, we thought it prudent to explore steps that companies can take to prepare now. So we turned to two experts with experience addressing similar national security, compliance and oversight matters. Their recommendations are inside.

CFPB proposes sensitive data rule; regulatory overlap with DoJ rule?
Last week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed a rule aimed at reining in data brokers that sell sensitive personal data. The proposed rule, which would address “critical threats” from current data broker practices, is part of a broader initiative that may overlap with others.

FTC announces two enforcement actions on sensitive personal data
Fresh on the heels of new rules from the DoJ and CFPB regarding sensitive personal data, the FTC has announced two enforcement actions against companies for collecting and selling location data on consumers. Experts say the actions drive home the government’s focus on protecting sensitive data.

Exclusive: We chat with the GC of UAE’s sovereign fund, Mubadala
This week, we sit down with Shahzad Khan, General Counsel Group Regulatory, Litigation & Governance Affairs at Mubadala, the $300 billion sovereign wealth fund. We discuss compliance, due diligence, and how he thinks about balancing commercial interests with national security concerns.

How will CFIUS’s new enforcement, subpoena powers impact parties?
As expected, Treasury has published its final rule that would increase penalties, define timelines regarding mitigation agreement negotiations, and expand CFIUS’s ability to request information from transaction parties. The final rule doesn’t stray far from the original proposal. Details, impact inside.