Is Hon Hai anxious after failing to complete the acquisition of Sharp in June?

According to the Nikkei News, Hon Hai was unable to complete the acquisition of Sharp by the end of June as planned due to the time-consuming antitrust review in China.

The delay in the deal dealt a heavy blow to Sharp's plans to appoint new management and quickly start the reconstruction process. The ailing Japanese electronics giant had hoped to receive a capital injection in June to ease the company's balance sheet and then implement a new management structure on July 1, a Sharp insider said.

Hon Hai plans to complete the acquisition of Sharp in June (Photo from the Nikkei website)

Hon Hai Chairman Terry Gou stressed at a shareholders meeting on June 22 that the acquisition of Sharp is expected to be completed by the end of June. Sharp President Kozo Takahashi also said June 30 is the target date.

Due to the large loss in the previous fiscal year, Sharp's net assets have turned negative. Without Sharp's capital injection, this situation cannot be changed. Therefore, Sharp's financial department is looking forward to the completion of the transaction.

At the meeting on June 23, Sharp shareholders approved the appointment of a new board of directors, but Tai Jeng-wu, who was selected by Foxconn to replace Takahashi Kozo, and other new executives will need to take office after the acquisition of both parties is completed. Takahashi Kozo, who was dismissed for taking responsibility for Sharp's losses, will need to stay until the acquisition transaction is completed.

In the past month, Sharp's stock price has fallen by 25%, closing at 110 yen on Thursday. On Monday, Sharp's stock price reached a low of 94 yen, which was close to the acquisition price of 88 yen offered by Hon Hai.

The only senior personnel change announced by Sharp on Thursday was the return of Fujikazu Nakayama, who was Sharp's representative director and senior executive until June 2015. He will oversee Sharp's copier business as president of the division.

Friday is a big day for Sharp, which will relocate its headquarters from Osaka's Abeno district, where founder Hayakawa Tokuji moved the company's headquarters from the greater Tokyo area, to the suburbs of Sakai, where Hon Hai and Sharp's joint venture LCD panel factory is located.

Hon Hai's acquisition of Sharp is due on October 5, and Hon Hai said it plans to provide funding soon. Four years ago, Sharp and Hon Hai had a deal that fell through, leaving Sharp very hurt. Without the funds needed to re-emerge, Sharp will reach a major milestone.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.