Digest opened free editor
Rola Khaleda, FT editor, chooses her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Nissan began searching for a strategic partner in the technology industry after the CEO McCoto Oshida told his counterpart in Honda that he had ended the merger talks to create the fourth largest car maker in the world.
Searching for new partners will be wide and outside the auto industry, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Some members of the Board of Directors are also open to consider a partnership with the manufacturer of the iPhone Taiwanese Foxconn. Apple’s Apple Supplier approached the Alliance Renault partner about getting a portion of his share in April late last year, which led to a round of frantic but passing fusion negotiations with Honda.
Ouction from Honda Toshiro Mibi President met on Thursday morning to inform him of the Board of Directors to solve talks announced in December to collect the company with a market capitalist of about $ 58 billion, according to persons familiar with the matter.
The conversations collapsed after Honda asked for the weekend that Nissan accepted a new offer to become a fully owned subsidiary, deviating from the structure agreed at the beginning of a joint holding company.
On Wednesday, the Nissan board meeting decided that he would stop merging talks because Honda told them that the new offer was “taking or leaving it”, which they could not accept for fear of losing the decision -making force and its weak brand under Honda Administration.
Nissan and Honda refused to comment. The two companies are scheduled to report profits next Thursday, when it is expected to announce that the talks have ended and explained the reason.
After the official talks were launched with Honda, the discussions soon descended into a high battle, as Honda Nissan accused of moving very slowly in its restructuring plan and Nissan claims the new Honda offer.
Analysts were skeptical in the union from the beginning because of the Gulf in the cultures of companies – Nissan proud of its engineering talents and Honda with a long record of going alone.
Renault from France unloaded the contribution of 36 percent in April after its 25 -year alliance was restructured in 2023.
The collapse of the acquisitions leaves the door open to Foxconn to revive his ambitions to take Renault’s share in Nissan as a platform to expand its electric car unit.
John Secki, chief strategy official in the EV’s Foxconn section, knows Nissan well after she previously worked as her executive official until the end of 2019.