Back to: GOVERNMENT, THE LEGAL SYSTEM, &ADMINISTRATIVE LAW

Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) Definition

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) is an interagency committee established by the United States government to review transactions by foreign persons with the sum of determining whether such foreign persons will not end up controlling an indigenous business. The Defense Production Act of 1950 established CIFUS, this inter-agency committee focuses on transactions that pose a threat to national security or threaten the ownership of a U. S business. Members of CIFUS are from the Department of State and Department of Defense but the agency is chaired by the U.S treasury department.

Understanding CFIUS

Foreign investments and transactions is important to the growth of a national but it can equally pose threats to national security. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) was established to examine the implications of foreign trade and investment in the U.S national security. CIFUS also reviews transactions between American firms and foreign firms to determine whether the foreign firm will end up controlling the U.S business.

Committee's Role

CIFUS focuses on diverse transactions, including those related to technology, defense and business. In business, CIFUS reviews transactions pertaining to the purchase of a US based firm by foreign persons with a bid identify whether the transaction will pose a threat to national security or otherwise. Other roles of this interagency committee include;

• Investigation of mergers and acquisitions between a foreign firm and a US based firm.
• Review of all transactions to determine whether they will not result into national threat.
• Suspension of transactions perceived to pose a threat to national security.