Sharp agrees to Foxconn takeover

Sharp’s booth at CES 2015

Japanese electronics manufacturer and TV maker Sharp has agreed to a multi-billion dollar takeover by Taiwan’s Foxconn.

Sharp said it will issue and sell JPY489 billion (€4 billion)-worth of new shares to Foxconn, known officially as Hon Hai, which will become the controlling shareholder in Sharp with a two-thirds stake.

However, following the announcement, Foxconn reportedly said it would delay signing the agreement over information it had received from Sharp that still needed to be clarified.

“We will have to postpone any signing of a definitive agreement until we have arrived at a satisfactory understanding and resolution of the situation,” said Foxconn in a statement, published by the BBC.

Foxconn was expected to finalise a takeover deal for Sharp by the end of February, after the two sides reached consensus on “most points” earlier this month.