Toshiba Corp. to have extraordinary shareholders meeting next month to ascertain investor’s feedback about its revised separation plan. This will set a showdown with activities shareholders opposing the Japanese conglomerate giant restructuring proposal.
As per Bloomberg News, the Tokyo-based company will meet on March 24. The vote on the split plan will not be legally binding, according to a statement from the company.
This shareholder meeting comes on the heels of an announcement from the company about its decision to divide itself into two companies after scrapping an initial split into three companies that faced fierce criticism from activist shareholders.
Toshiba plans to spin off its non-core areas, including semiconductors, elevators, and lighting. The company refuted the allegation that the change was due to pressure from shareholders and said that the new plan would save money and be smoother.
According to Toshiba, the two proposals from 3D Investment partners Pte will also be put to the vote in the shareholder meeting. The first proposal is to amend the company’s article of incorporation to allow the company split and any other reorganization suggested and supported by the Board and the strategic review committee.
The second proposal ensures that all alternatives to the reorganization plan are considered fully by the strategic review committee. The Board of Toshiba has opposed both proposals.
Toshiba was once considered the most respected company in Japan but has been in crisis mode for some years due to its mismanagement and repeated scandals. It invented the flash memory for computing, but its disastrous expansion in nuclear power forced it to sell its semiconductor business. That deal forced the activist shareholder to ask for a change. They include Effusion Capital and 3D Investment; the two largest shareholdings have 10% and 7.6% stake, respectively, as per Bloomberg data.
3D investment has called the company to reopen negotiations with private equity firms on selling the company rather than splitting it.
