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Latest JDI Deal for $470m Expected to Close in October
October 14, 2019
 
Japan Display Inc said it aims to close a deal this month for least 50 billion yen ($470m) in funding, down from $740m, after Chinese investment firm Harvest Group pulled out of the deal last month, citing differences with other investors over corporate governance. Hong Kong-based Oasis Management was added to the group and will  contribute $150-180 million, plus Apple is expected to raise their stake from $100m to $200m. A Japan Display supplier and other funds are also set take part. "We are close to 50 billion and I believe we can cement the deal this month," new Chief Executive Minoru Kikuoka told Reuters in an interview. The planned revised bailout deal is smaller than a previously announced plan for as much as 80 billion yen. Kikuoka, who took the helm in September, said LCD screens are drawing renewed market interest, pointing to solid demand for affordable smartphones with low-cost displays. Orders for LCD screens from a major customer (Apple) have been "stronger than previously planned," Kikuoka said. Apple accounted for about 60% of its revenues in the last financial year ended March. Kikuoka said the company will produce OLED screens Apple Watch this year. Venturing into mass-production of OLED panels for smartphones would require at least 200 billion yen ($1.9 billion) to convert an idle LCD plant, Kikuoka said, adding that would depend on whether it could find partners to shoulder that cost. "We are not planning to make capital investments on our own for OLED," he said, adding that excessive capacity for LCD production has drained the company's balance sheet and that any discussions on OLED for smartphones would come after a bailout was in place. Japan Display is also considering making its smartphone panel division into a separate company, possibly drawing on capital from external partners, a move that could help reduce the impact of smartphone market volatility on its earnings, Kikuoka said.