Bain Capital aims to list Toshiba chip unit in 3 years

In a last-minute twist to a long and highly contentious auction, Toshiba said in a late-night announcement through the exchange it agreed to sign a contract for the deal worth about 2 trillion yen ($18 billion).

TOKYO: US private equity firm Bain Capital LP on Thursday said it aims to list Toshiba Corp’s chip unit on the Tokyo Stock Exchange within three years, to cash in its investment after leading an US$18 billion acquisition of the business.

Bain, whose consortium signed the purchase deal last week, also said it hopes to settle legal disputes over the transaction at an early stage with Western Digital Corp, Toshiba’s joint-venture partner.

Toshiba aims to complete the sale by the end of its fiscal year in March. It plans to use the proceeds to recover from the bankruptcy of its US nuclear power subsidiary, and save itself from potential delisting.

With the clock ticking, Bain filed for antitrust approval in China the day after signing, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

Several other sources told Reuters that the strategic nature of the chip industry for China and political complications - including currently tense relations with South Korea, and the presence of South Korea’s SK Hynix Inc in the consortium - see the process drawn out.

In the first news conference since the signing, Yuji Sugimoto, head of Bain Capital in Japan, told reporters on Thursday that Bain hopes to achieve stability at the chip unit through contracts with Apple Inc, a major client and member of the consortium. - Reuters