WASHINGTON, April 10 (Reuters) - The Biden

administration will consider concerns about Chinese chip

designer Brite Semiconductor flagged by Republican Senator Marco

Rubio, as it decides what firms to add to a trade sanction list,

the Commerce Department said.

The concerns were raised in a letter calling on the agency

to sanction the company after Reuters reported in December that

it was part-owned by blacklisted Chinese chipmaker SMIC and

offers chip design services to at least six Chinese military

suppliers.

Reuters also revealed that the Shanghai-based company had

financial backing from American sources including Wells Fargo ( WFC )

and access to topnotch U.S. chip design software made by

Synopsys ( SNPS ) and Cadence.

"Brite's example shows that swift action is needed now to

prevent China's chip industrial base from growing stronger,"

Rubio wrote in the December letter addressed to Commerce

Department Secretary Gina Raimondo, citing the Reuters report.

"I urge you to impose the same licensing requirements on Brite

that are imposed on SMIC," Rubio said.

SMIC, China's top chipmaker, was added to a trade sanction

list known as the Entity List over its apparent ties to the

Chinese military industrial complex. SMIC has previously denied

any ties to China's military, saying that it manufactures chips

and provides services "solely for civilian and commercial

end-users and end-uses."

"With respect to Brite, (Commerce) will keep your concerns

in mind as it assesses potential new additions to the Entity

List," a Commerce Department official wrote in response to Rubio

in a letter dated March 8 and seen by Reuters.

Rubio welcomed the response but urged the agency to take

more concrete steps.

"While it is encouraging the bureau recognizes it has the

authority to blacklist Brite and tighten export controls on

American chip-design software, those words are meaningless

unless the Biden Administration takes swift action," Rubio said.

Asked for comment, the Chinese embassy in Washington said

that China firmly opposed the U.S. "overstretching" the concept

of national security and setting up discriminatory lists.

"We urge the U.S. to immediately correct these

discriminatory practices and provide a fair, just and

non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese companies,"

an embassy spokesperson said in an email.

Brite and SMIC did not immediately respond to requests for

comment.

The news comes a day before Brite's shares are set to begin

trading on the Shanghai stock exchange.