Toshiba
Electronics company has been privatized in an £11bn deal by a consortium led by Japan Industrial Partners
Wed Dec 20, 2023 09.07 GMT
Toshiba, the Japanese company that represented the country's electronics dominance in the 20th century, has stopped listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange after 74 years.
The manufacturer, associated in Britain with its 1980s “Ello Tosh, gotta Toshiba” advertising campaign, was acquired on Wednesday in an £11 billion deal by a consortium of investors led by private equity investor Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) privatized.
The group also includes the financial services provider Orix, the energy supplier Chubu Electric Power and the chip manufacturer Rohm.
It follows years of pressure on the company by foreign investors from activist investors after unrest was sparked by a huge accounting scandal that rocked one of Japan's best-known companies and raised questions about the country's insular corporate governance model.
Toshiba has already taken steps to revitalize itself under the new ownership, including a deal with investor Rohm to make chips that control power to electronic devices. Some analysts believe the company may be broken up to capture more value.
According to a company history, Toshiba's roots go back to a factory founded in 1875, less than a decade after the end of Japan's 250 years of cultural and economic isolation. The successor, Shibaura Engineering Works, merged with the Tokyo Electric Company in 1939 and was renamed Toshiba in 1978.
After surviving the turmoil of World War II, Toshiba's star rose along with the Japanese economy, which became the second largest in the world after the United States.
Toshiba's recent problems were first raised publicly in 2015, when the company launched an investigation into apparently inflated profits, closely followed by major problems at its nuclear technology subsidiary. That led to stock sales and the divestment of some businesses, including the unit that makes flash memory chips for smartphones.
The Japanese government will monitor developments closely. The company employs around 106,000 people and some of its activities are considered critical to national security.
Four JIP executives will join the board, as well as one each from Orix and Chubu Electric. The new board – all men after the company added some women last year – will be joined by a senior adviser from Toshiba's main lender, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group.
In a statement, Toshiba said: “The company sincerely thanks its shareholders and other stakeholders for their understanding and unwavering support for the company's management in the many years since the listing.” With a new shareholder, the Toshiba Group will now take a big step in make a new future.”
{{#Ticker}}
{{top left}}
{{bottom left}}
{{top right}}
{{bottom right}}
{{#goalExceededMarkerPercentage}}{{/goalExceededMarkerPercentage}}{{/ticker}}
{{Headline}}
{{#paragraphs}}
{{.}}
{{/paragraphs}}{{highlightedText}}
{{#choiceCards}}
One-time, monthly, yearly
Other
{{/choiceCards}}We will be in touch to remind you to contribute. Watch for a message in your inbox. If you have any questions about contributing, please contact us.