NISSAN Motor fired its chairman in a dramatic end to the executive’s nearly two-decade-long reign at the Japanese carmaker after his arrest for alleged financial improprieties.
In an hours-long meeting, the company’s board of directors voted unanimously to dismiss Carlos Ghosn as chairman and as a representative director, Nissan said in a statement.
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It said its own internal investigation, prompted by a whistleblower, found serious misconduct including under-reporting of his income and misuse of company assets.
It was a stunning downfall for one of the biggest figures in the car industry, a man who helped drive turnarounds at both France’s Renault SA and at Nissan and then managed an alliance between them that sold 10.6 million cars last year, besting its rivals.
Nissan said in a statement filed to the Tokyo Stock Exchange that its investigation uncovered misuse of company investment funds and expense money for personal gain.
Earlier this week, Renault voted to keep Ghosn as its chief executive but appointed Thierry Bollore, its chief operating officer, as its interim chief. Ghosn, 64, is suspected of under-reporting $44.6 million in income from 2011 to 2015, according to prosecutors.
Another Nissan executive, Greg Kelly, was arrested on suspicion of collaborating in the wrongdoing and also will be dismissed as a representative director, Nissan said. Their replacements will be decided later.
Nissan's board consists of nine members, including Ghosn and Kelly.
The seven other board members voted at the meeting, including two members from Nissan and two from Renault.
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