Toshiba has named the Innovation Network Corp of Japan, Bain Capital and the Development Bank of Japan as the preferred bidder to acquire its memory chip business.
Toshiba Memory Corp was spun off into a separate company from 01 April, and Toshiba hopes to sell the company in order to shore up its balance sheet after major writedowns on its energy business. Other interested bidders reportedly included Broadcom, SK Hynix, Apple and Foxconn.
Toshiba said the selected consortium offered not only the best bid, but also a greater chance of closing the transaction, retention of employees and keeping sensitive technology in Japan. The INCJ is a public-private partnership set up by the government and major Japanese corporations to support innovative businesses in the country.
Toshiba aims to reach a definitive agreement on the sale by its shareholders meeting 28 June and to close the sale by March 2018. No financial details of the proposed deal were disclosed.
