A consortium that includes Western Digital is offering 1.9tr yens ($17.4bn) for Toshibas memory chip business, which the Japanese conglomerate is trying to sell to cover losses from its US nuclear business, sources said on Thursday.
Under the proposal, Toshiba’s lenders, including Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp and Mizuho Bank, would also extend around 700 billion yen in loans.
Toshiba said it could not comment on discussions with potential suitors for the chips business. Sources said that Toshiba wants to reach a deal by the end of the month and close the sale by the end of March to ensure it does not report a negative net worth, or liabilities exceeding assets, for a second year running. This could result in a delisting from the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
