U.S. Treasury Department proposes expanding tech investment restrictions to N. Korea

The U.S. Treasury Department has proposed expanding restrictions on American investments in sensitive technologies to include North Korea and several other countries, as Washington seeks to prevent adversaries from using U.S. capital to develop advanced military capabilities.

The proposed regulations, detailed in a notice scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Thursday, would expand the existing Outbound Investment Security Program, which currently covers China, including Hong Kong and Macau, to include North Korea, Russia, Iran and Cuba, according to the Treasury Department.

The proposal seeks to implement the Comprehensive Outbound Investment National Security Act, enacted in December last year as part of the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act.

Under the proposal, certain investments by U.S. persons involving covered foreign entities engaged in specified sensitive technologies would be prohibited, while other transactions would be subject to notification requirements.

The regulations would cover specified activities in key technology sectors, including semiconductors, microelectronics, artificial intelligence (AI), quantum information technologies, high-performance computing and supercomputing.

"The proposed regulations would strengthen the existing Outbound Investment Security Program to prevent our adversaries from using U.S. investment to develop critical technologies that threaten U.S. national security," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

The proposed regulations are subject to public comments through Dec. 7, with the department expected to issue final implementing rules at a later date.