After 74 years of dominance, “Toshiba” exits Japanese Stock ‎Exchange

After 74 years of domination of the electronics market in the twentieth century, it was announced on Wednesday that the listing of Toshiba Company on the Japanese Stock Exchange was cancelled.

A private consortium led by the equity firm “Japan Industrial Partners” completed its acquisition of “Toshiba” last September, for about $14 billion.

The acquisition deal places the Japanese company in the hands of local investors, after years of pressure from foreign investors, following turmoil that began with a major scandal that shook the foundations of the well-known company, and raised questions about the independent corporate management model in the country.

Toshiba has already taken steps to try to revive itself under its new owners, which included a deal with investor Rohm to manufacture chips to control power supplies for electronics, while analysts believe that the company may be dismantled to increase its value.

Toshiba’s roots go back to a factory established in 1875, according to the company’s official history, less than a decade after the end of the 250-year era of cultural and economic isolation that Japan experienced.

In 1939, the company, which was then called Shibaura Engineering Works, merged with the Tokyo Electric Company, and its name was changed to “Toshiba” in 1978.

After surviving the turmoil of World War II, Toshiba’s star rose with the boom in the Japanese economy, which became the second largest economy in the world, after the United States.

Toshiba’s problems were first publicly reported in 2015, when the company opened an investigation into what was revealed to be an overstatement of profits, and this was followed by major problems within its nuclear technology subsidiary.

This led to sales of the company’s shares and the unloading of some parts of the business, including the unit that manufactures flash memory chips for smartphones, according to The Guardian newspaper.

Toshiba said in a statement that the company expresses its sincere gratitude to its shareholders and other stakeholders “for their understanding and sincere support for the management of the company for many years since the company’s listing.” Toshiba Group will now take a big step towards a new future with a new shareholder.”

The company has more than 106,000 workers, and some of its operations are seen as important to Japanese national security.

Toshiba shares closed Tuesday on its last trading day at 4,590 yen ($31.95). Toshiba said in a statement that it will now take a big step towards a new future with a new owner, adding that it will appreciate the continued understanding and support of stakeholders. In addition to Japan Industrial Partners, financial services company Orkis, CLP Chubu Electric Power, and chipmaker Rohm are also part of the consortium.

Toshiba’s roots go back to a factory established in 1875, according to the company’s history, less than a decade after the end of 250 years of Japanese cultural and economic isolation. The company, which was then called Shibaura Engineering Works, merged with the Tokyo Electric Company in 1939 and its name was changed to Toshiba in 1978. After surviving the turmoil of World War II, Toshiba’s star rose with the Japanese economy, which became the second largest economy in the world after the United States earlier.