TOKYO (Reuters) – The Tokyo Stock Exchange wants Toshiba Corp to make “prompt and appropriate” disclosure about its widening governance scandal, including who was responsible, the head of the bourse said, adding transparency remained a problem.
Hiromi Yamaji also told Reuters that activist investors – who have been in focus because of Toshiba – can be a force for better shareholder engagement at Japanese companies and help improve governance.
His comments reflect both a shift in attitude toward activist investors in Japan, and the extent the Toshiba scandal has raised concern within corporate Japan about governance, something shareholders have said is long overdue.
“The lack of transparency is the biggest problem at Toshiba,” Yamaji said in an interview late on Friday, adding that investors are eager to know if shareholders were treated unfairly.
“We strongly request Toshiba make prompt and appropriate disclosures of its own inquiries such as who was responsible,” he said.
An independent probe revealed last month that Toshiba had colluded with the government to put pressure on foreign shareholders.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) is owned by Japan Exchange Group Inc.
(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki, Hideyuki Sano and Noriyuki Hirata; Editing by David Dolan)
