With the failure of Nvidia's acquisition of Arm, there has been rumors of "nationalization" of Arm in the UK again, and state-owned gold stocks have been put back on the agenda. In this regard, the British "Financial Times" wrote an article that gold stocks are a disgraceful solution with protectionism.

The article argues that during the wave of privatization in Europe in the 1970s and 1980s, so-called gold stocks (known in Germany as spezialaktie) were popular, allowing the government to invest in a range of companies including utilities and oil and gas giants. Listed companies exercise control. So far, most gold stocks have been redeemed at the turn of the century.

The UK Defence Council wants all defence companies to recover their golden shares, angered by US private equity firm Cobham's $3.6 billion takeover of Ultra Electronics. More paradoxically, British MP Tom Tugendhat is fighting for the government to take a stake in the chip design company Arm (25.1% stake). The owner of Arm, SoftBank, originally planned to spend $40 billion to sell it to Nvidia. After the transaction failed, SoftBank plans to list it in New York. Consistent with Washington and Beijing, Tom Tugendhat believes that national security is an integral part of technological leadership.

Like stocks owned by tech founders, state-owned shares can have an impact on company performance and the free market. An unequal veto by the acquirer deprives other shareholders of the opportunity to sell. This is especially bad for the UK market, where mergers and acquisitions are prevalent. Take the redemption of golden shares in water and power companies in the mid-1990s, which, to the dismay of politicians, sparked a series of bids for the development of all but one regional power company over a two-year period. All failed miserably.

The European Commission is more concerned about the barriers to the free flow of capital, which many EU policies have largely succeeded in removing, although there are still boycotts, especially in the UK. These include BAE and Rolls-Royce, both of which have defense-building capabilities.

The article points out that when it comes to national security, the government has reason to exercise its veto. Gold stocks are also useful in other ways, such as protecting the environment or social mission. It also makes sense that the founders of the Thomson family have a stake in Thomson Reuters to preserve the independence and impartiality of reporting. Not so with giving tech companies similar government powers.