On Thursday, Toshiba (6502.T) said that Japan Industrial Partners (JIP)’s $14 billion tender bid had been accepted, allowing the struggling industrial conglomerate to go private.
Tendering 78.65% of Toshiba shares gave the JIP-led consortium a majority of over two-thirds, enough to force out remaining stockholders.
After years of fighting activist investors abroad, the transaction brings home the 148-year-old electronics-to-power stations business. Toshiba could be delisted in December.
Toshiba and activist shareholders were stuck for years. This takeover frees both parties from their mutual bearhug “Smartkarma analyst Travis Lundy of Quiddity Advisors states
Toshiba accepted the 2 trillion yen ($13.5 billion) acquisition bid in March. Although some shareholders were upset with the pricing, Toshiba said there was no chance of a larger offer or rival bid.
“We are deeply grateful to many of our shareholders for understanding the company’s position,” Toshiba CEO Taro Shimada said Thursday. Toshiba “will now take a major step toward a new future with a new shareholder,” he said.
Toshiba says its complex interactions with stakeholders, including shareholders with differing perspectives, have impacted business operations. A solid shareholder base would enable it to pursue its long-term goal of high-margin digital services.
“Management and new ownership alignment should boost morale. Lundy said management must tell investors a better story to succeed.
JIP has spun out Olympus’s (7733.T) camera company and Sony Group’s (6758.T) laptop business from Japanese conglomerates, albeit it is not generally known abroad.
Toshiba has been plagued by accounting scandals, losses, and near delisting since 2015. Several corporate governance scandals have plagued it.
The partnership of 20 Japanese corporations led by Rohm (6963.T), Orix (8591.T), and Chubu Electric Power (9502.T) is JIP.
The largest M&A deal in Japan this year. Japan is the only major Asian market with mergers and acquisitions growth this year, according to LSEG data.
Private equity deals have been active, notably a government-backed fund’s $6.4 billion takeover of JSR.
