Nissan Says Ex-Head Received Illegal Payment Of $8.9Mln From Joint Mitsubishi Venture

Former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn, who was arrested in Japan in late 2018 over financial misconduct, received an illicit payment of 7.8 million euros ($8.9 million) from a joint venture company between Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors (NMBV), Nissan said in a press release on Friday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th January, 2019) Former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn, who was arrested in Japan in late 2018 over financial misconduct, received an illicit payment of 7.8 million Euros ($8.9 million) from a joint venture company between Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors (NMBV), Nissan said in a press release on Friday.

"The joint investigation has confirmed that Ghosn entered into a personal employment contract with NMBV and that under that contract he received a total of 7,822,206.12 euros (including tax) in compensation and other payments of NMBV funds," the release read.

Nissan added that despite the requirement that compensation contracts must be approved by the company's board of directors, Ghosn signed the contract without informing anyone.

"Despite the clear requirement that any decisions regarding director compensation and employment contracts specifying compensation must be approved by NMBV's board of directors, Ghosn entered into the contract without any discussion with the other board members, Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa and Mitsubishi Motors CEO Osamu Masuko, to improperly receive the payments," Nissan said.

The company added that Ghosn and former Nissan Representative Director Greg Kelly had then started to look for a way to pay back the undisclosed compensation.

"In addition, the investigation has also confirmed that soon after the announcement in 2016 that Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors would forge a strategic alliance, Ghosn, former representative director Greg Kelly and others began to explore the possibility of paying undisclosed compensation to Ghosn through an equally-owned Netherlands-based unconsolidated joint venture between the companies... Nissan views the payments Ghosn received from NMBV to be the result of misconduct, and will consider measures to recover from Ghosn the full sum," the statement read.

Ghosn and Kelly, his right-hand man, were arrested in Tokyo on November 19 on allegations of misreporting Ghosn's earnings over a five-year period from 2010. Both men have denied the allegation.

At the end of December, the prosecutor's office brought new charges against Ghosn, suspecting him of shifting a personal investment loss worth more than $16 million to the Japanese automaker. On December 31, the court extended Ghosn's detention until January 11 as part of an arrest warrant linked to breach of trust. Kelly was released on bail on December 25.