According to Asahi Shimbun’s report on September 21st, due to sustained massive losses, Japan’s sole NAND Flash giant, Kioxia, is considering layoffs, with some regular employees facing early retirement.
The report states that, due to shrinking memory demand and continuous substantial losses, Kioxia is considering layoffs to revive its operations. Additionally, in an effort to save itself, Kioxia will actively pursue a merger with Western Digital (WD) of the United States and seek $13.5 billion in funding from Japanese banks to establish a joint venture.
According to sources familiar with the matter, after explaining the situation to the labor union, Kioxia plans to recruit voluntary early retirees, targeting employees aged 56 and above. In addition to increasing the retirement benefits for volunteers, Kioxia will also provide assistance with reemployment.
Sources indicate that Kioxia and Western Digital will establish a holding company, with Western Digital holding a 50.5% stake and Kioxia holding 49.5%. Kioxia’s subsidiary companies, including those involved in NAND Flash production, will be incorporated under the holding company, while the NAND Flash business subsidiaries will initially continue to be listed on the US stock market, with the future goal of listing in Tokyo.
On the same day, September 21st, Toshiba, the former parent company of Kioxia, announced the successful completion of a $15 billion buyout offer led by the private equity fund Japan Industrial Partners (JIP). This move reached the threshold for privatizing the company, leading Toshiba to delist from the Tokyo Stock Exchange and ending its 74-year history as a publicly traded company.
Before the financial crisis and privatization, Toshiba’s semiconductor division had laid off approximately 350 employees and sought volunteers for early retirement. Other divisions within Toshiba had also sought around 1,060 early retirements. As of the 2023 fiscal year, the entire group planned to cut a total of 7,000 jobs.
Simultaneously, as the inventor of flash memory technology, Toshiba’s forced sale of its high-quality memory assets (which later became Kioxia) in 2017 marked a crucial step in Toshiba Group’s self-preservation. However, it also signified that Japan would no longer have control over the fate of its largest domestic semiconductor company.
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