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By Associated press
TOKYO – Nissan Motor Co. on Thursday sacked Carlos Ghosn as president, putting an end to his nearly two-decade reign over the Japanese automaker after his arrest for alleged financial irregularities.
At an hour-long meeting, the company's board of directors voted unanimously to remove Mr. Ghosn to the presidency and representative representation, Nissan said in a statement. a statement. His internal investigation, triggered by a whistleblower, revealed a serious misconduct, including an under-reporting of his income and an improper use of the company's assets.
One of the biggest figures in the automotive industry, it is a man who contributed to the recovery of the French companies Renault SA and Nissan, then to the management of an alliance between them, which sold 10.6 million cars last year, ahead of rivals.
In a statement to the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Nissan said its investigation revealed an improper use of corporate investment funds and money spending for personal purposes.
Earlier this week, Renault decided to retain Ghosn as managing director, but Thierry Bollore, its chief operating officer, was appointed acting director.
Another Nissan executive, Greg Kelly, has been arrested on suspicion of collaborating in the wrongdoing and will also be fired as a representative director, Nissan said. Their replacements will be decided later, he added.
Ghosn, 64, is suspected of underreporting $ 44.6 million in revenue from 2011 to 2015, according to Tokyo attorneys.
The Nissan Board of Directors is made up of nine members, including Ghosn and Greg Kelly. The other seven members of the board of directors voted at the meeting, including two members of Nissan and two of Renault.
Ghosn and Kelly will remain on Nissan's board for the moment, this decision being made by shareholders. No date has yet been set for a shareholder meeting.
Ghosn is also chairman of Mitsubishi Motors Corp., a small Japanese automaker, a partner in the Renault-Nissan alliance, which plans to hold a board meeting next week.
Ghosn has been in detention since being detained on Monday in a Tokyo detention center on the same terms as other detainees, Tokyo deputy prosecutor Shin Kukimoto said on Thursday. He gave little details about the case.
Under Japanese law, suspects can be detained for up to 20 days by possible charge without formal indictment. Extra charges may be tagged, resulting in longer holdings. Neither has been charged so far.
In the event of a violation of the finance and foreign exchange laws, the maximum penalty after a conviction is 10 years imprisonment, a fine of $ 89,000, or both.
French citizen born in Brazil, Ghosn became a kind of superstar in Japan, while he was directing Nissan 's rebirth since the bankruptcy after Renault sent him to help in 1999.
Ghosn held the position of General Manager of Nissan from 2001 to last year. He became general manager of Renault in 2005, simultaneously managing the two car manufacturers. In 2016, he also became president of Mitsubishi Motors Corp. after Nissan incorporated it into the alliance.
Kelly, 62, joined Nissan, the maker of the Leaf electric car and Infiniti luxury models, in the United States in 1988. He became a member of the board of directors in 2012. He worked in human resources and sales. alliance management.
Analysts believe that the future of the alliance between Nissan and Renault could be at stake, although Nissan's statement Thursday said the company's leadership was determined to downplay the impact of the deal. Ghosn deal on the partnership. Renault owns 43% of Nissan's capital and 15% of it.
"The long-standing alliance partnership with Renault remains unchanged," said Nissan's statement in English, highlighting the alliance rather than the misdeeds.
The board will also explore the possibility of establishing a third-party committee to strengthen management and compensation governance at Nissan.
President and CEO Hiroto Saikawa, during a long press conference on Monday, said that too much power had been concentrated in Ghosn and that too few credits had been awarded to the many other people working on the success of the company. 39; company.
Janet Lewis, general manager and director of industrial research for Asia at Macquarie Capital Securities in Tokyo, said in an interview that an adjustment was needed to give Nissan more of a say in the future. alliance with Renault.
The partnership remains crucial for both companies, she said, because in addition to financial ties, companies share technology and components.
Car manufacturers must look more like roommates than married couples. "So they have to find a way to share their home and put all their know-how at the service of technology, it's very necessary in terms of new automotive technology and developing a new platform," he said. Mr. Lewis.
"They have to find a way to continue in this way while living happily in the same house."
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