A $14 billion tender offer by a group called Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) with Toshiba had ended in success. This deal is said to pave the way for the Japanese industrial conglomerate to get a private equity owner after years of turmoil.
The JIP-led consortium squeezed the opportunity of the 78.65% of Toshiba shares tendered, giving the group a majority of more than two-thirds which should be enough to squeeze out remaining shareholders.
Toshiba, the 148-year-old electronics-to-power station maker is set to be delisted as early as December, putting it in the hands of domestic power.
Toshiba in March approved the buyout offer valuing the industrial conglomerate at 2 trillion yen ($13.5 billion). Although some shareholders did not show enthusiasm for the price, Toshiba reiterated that there was no prospect of a higher offer or competing bid.
“We are deeply grateful to many of our shareholders for being understanding of the company’s position,” Toshiba Chief Executive Taro Shimada said in a statement on Thursday. Toshiba “will now take a major step toward a new future with a new shareholder,” he added.
Toshiba has said its complex relationships with various stakeholders, including shareholders with different opinions, have hampered business operations and that a stable shareholder base would help the company pursue its long-term strategy centered on high-margin digital services.
JIP plans to retain CEO Shimada.
Although not well known overseas, JIP has been involved in corporate carve-outs and spin-offs from Japanese conglomerates, including Olympus’s camera business and Sony Group’s laptop computer business.
Since 2015, Toshiba has been battered by accounting scandals, suffered heavy losses and came close to being delisted. It has also been engulfed in a series of corporate governance scandals.
This deal will mark the largest M&A deal in Japan this year. Japan has been the only major market in Asia to have seen growth in mergers and acquisitions for the year to date, according to LSEG data.