Tokyo (AFP)

Toshiba CEO Nobuaki Kurumatani resigned Wednesday with immediate effect, announced the Japanese conglomerate in the midst of a storm, between pressure from activist shareholders and the proposed buyout of CVC Capital Partners as well as potential competing offers.

Toshiba's chairman of the board, Satoshi Tsunakawa, 65, will now combine the functions of chairman and chief executive officer, the group added in a statement following a board meeting.

Retaining Mr. Kurumatani, a former financier outside Toshiba appointed to head the group in 2018 to get him out of a serious crisis, was considered impossible internally, according to the Nikkei business daily.

His future seemed already very compromised since his dismal personal failure last month against the activist shareholders of Toshiba.

The shareholders then managed to pass a rebellious resolution at an extraordinary general meeting of the group, allowing the launch of an independent investigation to shed light on the ordinary general meeting of Toshiba in 2020, during which Mr. Kurumatani was renewed under questionable circumstances.

The proposed takeover of Toshiba by investment firm CVC Capital Partners, revealed last week, further weakened Mr. Kurumatani's position, given his proximity to CVC, of ​​which he was chairman in Japan just before taking over. reins of Toshiba.

His departure "should remove uncertainties about potential conflicts of interest in relation to CVC's offer, and push the board of directors to seek other offers in the best interests of shareholders," commented Wednesday to AFP Justin Tang, Asia Research Manager at United First Partners.

Financial company active worldwide and headquartered in Luxembourg, CVC has offered to acquire Toshiba for around $ 21 billion according to the press.

However, other investment funds, the American KKR and the Canadian Brookfield Asset Management, are considering competing offers, the Financial Times and the Bloomberg agency said on Wednesday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The possibility of a bidding battle for Toshiba boosted its share price on Wednesday, which jumped 6.63% to 4,900 yen at mid-session on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, as the flagship Nikkei fell slightly .

CVC reportedly offered a price of 5,000 yen per share, but a unit price of 6,000 yen (or $ 25 billion in total) might be needed to convince Toshiba shareholders, Tang said.

© 2021 AFP