Clearly the economic situation at Olympus was much worse than what the electronics manufacturer was letting on. The Japanese electronic manufacturers are under pressure with regards to competition from Chinese manufacturing plants and competitors. Sony, Nikon and Olympus are under pressure. That is stating it mildly; their long term future is on the line. Sony announced a capital injection of 50 Billion Yen today into Olympus. It will lead to Sony having a 11% shareholding of Olympus.
The truth is that Olympus has a huge perception issue. After their CEO became a whistleblower with regards to fraudulent financial reporting, it was a case of the business being on the back foot. Trust is lost and business relationships with suppliers of needed resources were damaged.
The question is; why does Sony, who also has financial issues feel the need to take a share of Olympus? Is it a case of doing the right thing or does Sony have long term ambitions for a potential take over? Perhaps a combination of all of three.
Is this the beginning of the end for Olympus?
