Olympus Auditor Called for Probe Into Acquisition, Report Says
By Chris Cooper
Oct. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Olympus Corp. should investigate payments made to advisers in connection with an acquisition, according to an external auditor's report obtained by Bloomberg News.
The company may face scrutiny by regulatory and prosecuting authorities because of potential offences including false accounting, financial assistance and breaches of directors' duties by the board, according to an Oct. 11 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers. The report was commissioned by Michael C. Woodford, whom Olympus fired as president on Oct. 14. Chairman
Tsuyoshi Kikukawa said the board fired Woodford, a 30-year veteran of the Japanese company, because he ``wouldn't listen.''
Olympus, a maker of cameras and medical equipment, paid $687 million to two advisory companies related to its purchase of Gyrus Group Plc in 2008, the report said. The fees were more than a third of the $2 billion purchase price, according to the report. One of the advisers, Cayman Islands-incorporated AXAM Investments Ltd., was removed from the local registry in June 2010 for non-payment of license fees, according to the report.
``The eventual cost of the Transaction to Olympus is extremely significant and is as a result of a number of actions taken by management which are questionable and which give cause for concern,'' the report says. ``We were unable to confirm that there has been improper conduct, however, given the sums of money involved and some of the unusual decisions that have been made it cannot be ruled out.''
Woodford, Kikukawa
When asked about the report, Olympus Executive Vice President Hisashi Mori said ``it is based on speculation.'' Mori spoke in a telephone interview. Kikukawa did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment.
PricewaterhouseCoopers spokesman Derek Nash said he ``could neither confirm or deny'' that the firm had done any work for Olympus.
Woodford, 51, became president of Olympus in April. He succeeded Kikukawa, who was president from October 2003 to March 2011. After Woodford was fired, Kikukawa, 70, resumed the presidency in addition to being chairman.
Olympus shares plunged 18 percent to close at 2,045 yen in Tokyo on Oct. 14, the biggest drop since 1974, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Almost 36 million shares changed hands, 16 times more than the six-month daily average of 2.2 million.
Six Letters
Woodford showed Bloomberg News six letters he says he wrote to Kikukawa and the board questioning the payments in the weeks before he was fired. The advisors negotiated an increase in completion fees to approximately $682 million from $189 million, according to the PWC report, which Woodford also disclosed to Bloomberg News.
There was no external legal advice on the increase and there was no formal board approval for the second agreement, according to Woodford.
``There are various communications between the president and those who are working for him,'' Executive Vice President Mori said. ``I don't think I need to speak about any more details than the fact there are various communications.''
Further calls made to Mori after midnight were not answered.
As part of the payment AXAM received preferred shares in Gyrus with a face value of $177 million on Sept. 30, 2008, according to the PWC report. Less than two months later, on Nov. 28, Olympus agreed to pay $557 million to buy the preferred shares from the adviser, the report said. AXAM subsequently negotiated a further increase in the value of the shares and in March 2010, Olympus paid $620 million for the securities, according to the report. Gyrus stopped trading as of Jan. 30, 2008, according to Bloomberg data.
``We properly revealed all the information on the acquisition of Gyrus,'' said Yasutoshi Fujiwara, a spokesman for Olympus. Further calls to Fujiwara were not answered.
Companies Act
``On the date the preference shares were issued by Gyrus, the Companies Act 1985 made it unlawful for a private limited company to give financial assistance for the purposes of discharging a liability incurred by a purchaser in relation to the acquisition of shares in that company,'' the PWC report said.
Additionally, Olympus paid about $773 million for three closely held companies between 2006 and 2008, according to Woodford's letter. Subsequently, Olympus wrote down the value of the acquisitions by $586 million, the letter said. The acquisitions had little in common with Olympus' main businesses, according to Woodford.
``There were $800 million in payments to buy companies making face cream and Tupperware,'' said Woodford. ``What the hell were we doing paying $800 million for these companies?''
--With reporting by Mariko Yasu, Takashi Amano, Yoshinori Eki,
Naoko Fujimura and Yuki Yamaguchi in Tokyo and Tony Aarons in
London. Editors: Bret Okeson, Brian Fowler
コメント
日経ラジオを聴いて金融リテラシーの大切さをあらためて感じています。（コカコーラ等、ダウ採用グローバル企業への投資、、非常にシンプルで判り易いですね。なかなか押し目がなくてもどかしいです）
さてオリンパスの件で気になった言葉がありました。「日本型のグローバル企業を目指して、、云々」
日本型グローバル企業とは？真相はこれから明らかになると思いますが、日本企業が真のグローバル企業になるにはまだまだ時間がかかるということでしょうか。。
いくら技術力があっても世界で評価されない理由が炙り出された気がしました。
http://www.corporate-legal.jp/houmu_news488/
（アップルに関係ない内容ですみません）
投稿: コジコジ | 2011年10月18日 (火) 21時35分
コジコジ様
オリンパスの件については、ケイマン諸島の会社が絡んでいたりと、まだまだ解明されていない部分がありそうです。
M&Aに長くかかわってきた者として敢えてコメントしますと、たとえ菊川会長の言うように支払った手数料は700億円ではなく、300億円であったとしても、2000億円の買収案件としては明らかに過大。
すでに英捜査当局に資料が提出されたとのことですが、当局による解明を期待したいところです。
（以下、本件に関する主なニュースを抜粋します）
Olympus Auditor Called for Probe Into Acquisition, Report Says
By Chris Cooper
Oct. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Olympus Corp. should investigate payments made to advisers in connection with an acquisition, according to an external auditor's report obtained by Bloomberg News.
The company may face scrutiny by regulatory and prosecuting authorities because of potential offences including false accounting, financial assistance and breaches of directors' duties by the board, according to an Oct. 11 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers. The report was commissioned by Michael C. Woodford, whom Olympus fired as president on Oct. 14. Chairman
Tsuyoshi Kikukawa said the board fired Woodford, a 30-year veteran of the Japanese company, because he ``wouldn't listen.''
Olympus, a maker of cameras and medical equipment, paid $687 million to two advisory companies related to its purchase of Gyrus Group Plc in 2008, the report said. The fees were more than a third of the $2 billion purchase price, according to the report. One of the advisers, Cayman Islands-incorporated AXAM Investments Ltd., was removed from the local registry in June 2010 for non-payment of license fees, according to the report.
``The eventual cost of the Transaction to Olympus is extremely significant and is as a result of a number of actions taken by management which are questionable and which give cause for concern,'' the report says. ``We were unable to confirm that there has been improper conduct, however, given the sums of money involved and some of the unusual decisions that have been made it cannot be ruled out.''
Woodford, Kikukawa
When asked about the report, Olympus Executive Vice President Hisashi Mori said ``it is based on speculation.'' Mori spoke in a telephone interview. Kikukawa did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment.
PricewaterhouseCoopers spokesman Derek Nash said he ``could neither confirm or deny'' that the firm had done any work for Olympus.
Woodford, 51, became president of Olympus in April. He succeeded Kikukawa, who was president from October 2003 to March 2011. After Woodford was fired, Kikukawa, 70, resumed the presidency in addition to being chairman.
Olympus shares plunged 18 percent to close at 2,045 yen in Tokyo on Oct. 14, the biggest drop since 1974, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Almost 36 million shares changed hands, 16 times more than the six-month daily average of 2.2 million.
Six Letters
Woodford showed Bloomberg News six letters he says he wrote to Kikukawa and the board questioning the payments in the weeks before he was fired. The advisors negotiated an increase in completion fees to approximately $682 million from $189 million, according to the PWC report, which Woodford also disclosed to Bloomberg News.
There was no external legal advice on the increase and there was no formal board approval for the second agreement, according to Woodford.
``There are various communications between the president and those who are working for him,'' Executive Vice President Mori said. ``I don't think I need to speak about any more details than the fact there are various communications.''
Further calls made to Mori after midnight were not answered.
As part of the payment AXAM received preferred shares in Gyrus with a face value of $177 million on Sept. 30, 2008, according to the PWC report. Less than two months later, on Nov. 28, Olympus agreed to pay $557 million to buy the preferred shares from the adviser, the report said. AXAM subsequently negotiated a further increase in the value of the shares and in March 2010, Olympus paid $620 million for the securities, according to the report. Gyrus stopped trading as of Jan. 30, 2008, according to Bloomberg data.
``We properly revealed all the information on the acquisition of Gyrus,'' said Yasutoshi Fujiwara, a spokesman for Olympus. Further calls to Fujiwara were not answered.
Companies Act
``On the date the preference shares were issued by Gyrus, the Companies Act 1985 made it unlawful for a private limited company to give financial assistance for the purposes of discharging a liability incurred by a purchaser in relation to the acquisition of shares in that company,'' the PWC report said.
Additionally, Olympus paid about $773 million for three closely held companies between 2006 and 2008, according to Woodford's letter. Subsequently, Olympus wrote down the value of the acquisitions by $586 million, the letter said. The acquisitions had little in common with Olympus' main businesses, according to Woodford.
``There were $800 million in payments to buy companies making face cream and Tupperware,'' said Woodford. ``What the hell were we doing paying $800 million for these companies?''
--With reporting by Mariko Yasu, Takashi Amano, Yoshinori Eki,
Naoko Fujimura and Yuki Yamaguchi in Tokyo and Tony Aarons in
London. Editors: Bret Okeson, Brian Fowler
10月18日（ブルームバーグ）：オリンパスでは18日になって、マイケル・ウッドフォード前社長が解任のポイントとなった英社買収の顧問料支払いについて、英当局に調査を依頼したことを明らかにした。一方、会社側は昼過ぎ「全ての買収は適正」と反論、亀裂の深まりを受け、下げ止まりかけた株価も急落して同日の取引を終了した。
オリンパスは17日夜、投資家向け電話会議を開催。広報担当の北田津世志氏が18日語ったところでは、会議では森久志副社長がウッドフォード氏への法的措置を「選択肢の１つとして検討する」と発言。森氏は、解任前日の13日にウッドフォード氏が、菊川剛会長と森氏の解任を要求したことも認めた。
北田氏によると会社側は電話会議で、ジャイラス買収でオリンパスがファイナンシャルアドバイザー（ＦＡ）に支払った顧問料は、300億円程度だったと説明した。
モルガン・スタンレーＭＵＦＧ証券の嘉数卓洋アナリストらは終了後のリポートに、会議では「6.2億ドルと報道されているＦＡへの報酬については『その半分以下』と説明」されたと記載した。同リポートは電話会議で会社側がＦＡ報酬について「今後も追加的な開示は行わないとコメント」した点をとらえ「株式市場の評価を変えるのは難しい」との認識を示している。
ウッドフォード氏は、ブルームバーグとのインタビューで、 法的措置がなされれば「喜んで」受けると発言。また、英重大不正捜査局（ＳＦＯ）当局者と会い、自身が調査を要請したコンサルティング会社プライスウォーターハウスクーパース（ＰｗＣ）報告書などの書類を渡したことを明らかにした。
会社側の反論後に急落
18日のオリンパス株価終値は前日8.9％安の1417円。解任発表前の13日終値比では43％もの下げとなった。午前中には同2.3％高の場面もあったが、午後に日本経済新聞電子版が菊川会長のインタビューを伝え、同社がウッドフォード氏解任に関する一連の報道へのコメントを発表すると値を下げ、一時は同18％安まで売り込まれた。
売買金額も、解任発表以降の３営業日連続で国内上場株の首位。18日は1132億円と、２位のファナックの7.6倍に上る。
日経は菊川氏が、ジャイラス買収の顧問料は「公認会計士や弁護士の第三者意見を得ており適正だ」と反論したと報じた。会社コメントも「すべてのＭ＆Ａ（企業の合併・買収）は適正な手続きを経た上で、会計上も適切に処理し、実施している」と主張、ウッドフォード氏の言動を伝えた一連の報道は「憶測などに基づく」ものだとした。
オリンパスの第７位株主、ハリス・アソシエーツのデービッド・ヘロー最高投資責任者は18日、メールでの取材で「ここまでの経過はポジティブではなかった」ため、近く菊川氏と会話したいと語った。
取材協力：Lindsay Fortado、沢和世、安真理子
記事についての記者への問い合わせ先：東京 天野高志 Takashi Amano tamano6@bloomberg.net
記事に関するエディターへの問い合わせ先：東京 大久保義人 Yoshito Okubo yokubo1@bloomberg.net香港 Michael Tighe mtighe4@bloomberg.net
更新日時: 2011/10/18 19:25 JST
投稿: 岩崎 | 2011年10月19日 (水) 00時29分