Terry Lloyd: ”Sharp: How Not to Sell a Company in Japan”.

japaninc

E-biz news in Japan

”Late last week, Mr. Terry Gou, the CEO of Foxconn Technology Group (also known as Honhai) signed a JPY389bn deal to take control of Sharp, one of Japan’s bedrock electronics firms. The signing came after a protracted cat-and-mouse game played between Mr. Gou, the management of Sharp, and in the wings, the public-private INCJ fund. Mr. Gou showed consummate deal sense in luring Sharp’s board with a much more attractive offer than the government’s INCJ (which wanted to break up the firm) then drag out the negotiations as Sharp was facing a possible collapse. Lastly, with impeccable timing he sprang a last minute demand to reduce the deal price by 20% and completely out-maneuvered, Sharp’s executives and shareholders, who eventually caved in and agreed.

Nikkei Asian Review: ”Japanese company needs to drop arrogant stance to survive”

Sharp’s head office in Abeno Ward, Osaka

”………………TOKYO — Sharp decided Thursday to accept a takeover offer from Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry, becoming the first major Japanese electronics maker to be acquired by a foreign company.

While Sharp will seek to resurrect itself under the umbrella of the Taiwanese contract electronics manufacturer also known as Foxconn, the key to successful rehabilitation will be the ability of the Osaka-based company to drop its arrogant stance.

Forbes: ”The Acquisition Of Japan’s Sharp By Taiwan’s Foxconn’s Historical Significance”

Sharp Foxconn

”The outcome of the acceptance by Japanese electronics giant Sharp of a USD $4.3bn takeover bid by Taiwanese multinational Foxconn remains to be seen. Its symbolic significance however could be quite extraordinary: will Japan’s notoriously insular economy, notably its notoriously ultra-insular electronics industry, be opening up to the outside world and especially to its East Asian neighbors?

”5 questions about Foxconn-Sharp takeover deal”

”Taiwan’s Foxconn has delayed the signing of a takeover agreement with Japanese electronics giant Sharp, leaving the US$5.9 billion acquisition up in the air. Will there still be a deal? We ask analysts”. ”SINGAPORE: The biggest takeover by a foreign company in Japan’s technology sector is looking less certain, after Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology Group said […]

Reuters: Japan fund makes late move to thwart Hon Hai in Sharp battle: sources

FT: “Sharp Warns on Ability to Stay Afloat after $1.9bn Loss”

BDTI’s Representative Director Nicholas Benes is quoted in his article about Sharp in the Financial Times this morning. Excerpts:  

Sharp, a century old stalwart of corporate Japan, has unveiled an annual loss of $1.9bn and warned of “material uncertainty” about its ability to stay in business, less than three years after facing a similar crisis of survival.