This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/03/business/carlos-ghosn-nissan-twitter.html

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Carlos Ghosn, Embattled Former Nissan Chief, Is on Twitter Carlos Ghosn, Ousted Nissan Chief, Joins Twitter With Promise to ‘Tell the Truth’
(about 11 hours later)
TOKYO — Carlos Ghosn is on Twitter, and he’s ready to talk.TOKYO — Carlos Ghosn is on Twitter, and he’s ready to talk.
The embattled former auto executive said on a new, verified account on Wednesday that he would hold a news conference next week. Mr. Ghosn didn’t disclose details, but he presumably will discuss the events surrounding his fall from the top of the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi auto alliance, an event that shook the global car business and put a harsh new light on perhaps the industry’s best-known leader. The embattled former auto executive said on a new, verified account on Wednesday that he would hold a news conference next week. Mr. Ghosn did not disclose details, but he presumably will discuss the events surrounding his fall from the top of the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi auto alliance, an event that shook the global car business and put a harsh new light on one of the industry’s best-known leaders.
“I’m getting ready to tell the truth about what’s happening,” Mr. Ghosn said, in English and in Japanese. “Press conference on Thursday, April 11.”“I’m getting ready to tell the truth about what’s happening,” Mr. Ghosn said, in English and in Japanese. “Press conference on Thursday, April 11.”
A spokesman confirmed that the new Twitter account belonged to Mr. Ghosn.A spokesman confirmed that the new Twitter account belonged to Mr. Ghosn.
Mr. Ghosn famously turned around Nissan, which had been mired in losses, after Renault of France infused billions of dollars into the company in 1999. Eventually, he oversaw the broad alliance between the French and Japanese companies, which grew in 2016 to include Mitsubishi Motors of Japan. His leadership of the alliance, which makes about 10 million cars a year, gave him a reputation as a turnaround expert who could make companies work across borders in a more globalized era.Mr. Ghosn famously turned around Nissan, which had been mired in losses, after Renault of France infused billions of dollars into the company in 1999. Eventually, he oversaw the broad alliance between the French and Japanese companies, which grew in 2016 to include Mitsubishi Motors of Japan. His leadership of the alliance, which makes about 10 million cars a year, gave him a reputation as a turnaround expert who could make companies work across borders in a more globalized era.
That legacy has been hit hard in recent months. Mr. Ghosn was arrested in November by the Japanese authorities on suspicion of financial wrongdoing, and he spent more than three months in a Tokyo jail before his release on bail last month. He now faces criminal charges, filed by prosecutors who allege he underreported his compensation and improperly shifted personal investment losses onto the company’s books. That legacy has been hit hard in recent months. Mr. Ghosn was arrested in November by the Japanese authorities on suspicion of financial wrongdoing in connection with his role at Nissan, and he spent more than three months in a Tokyo jail before his release on bail last month. He faces criminal charges, filed by prosecutors who allege he underreported his compensation and improperly shifted personal investment losses onto the company’s books.
Nissan, meanwhile, has turned on its former savior. In a report issued last week, a Nissan-appointed panel said it found numerous corporate governance failings at the company. It blamed Mr. Ghosn for the shortcomings, saying he had accumulated too much authority and made it difficult for internal monitors to find wrongdoing. Nissan has said that it alerted prosecutors to Mr. Ghosn’s alleged activities. A Nissan-appointed review panel said last week that it found numerous corporate governance failings at the company and blamed Mr. Ghosn for the shortcomings. The report said he had accumulated too much authority and made it difficult for internal monitors to find wrongdoing.
Mr. Ghosn has said he is innocent and that his compensation and expenditures were approved by others at Nissan. He has blamed his ouster on Nissan executives who he says conspired to keep him from bringing the Japanese company closer together with Renault. Mr. Ghosn has said he is innocent of all allegations and that his compensation and expenditures were approved by others at Nissan. He has blamed his ouster on Nissan executives who he says conspired to keep him from bringing the Japanese company closer together with Renault. He has called criticism leveled by Nissan executives “part of an unsubstantiated smear campaign.”
Mr. Ghosn gave two interviews while in jail, and his new team of lawyers held a news conference last month after they were appointed. But he has kept a low profile since his release on bail, when he wore what looked like a crossing guard’s uniform and a surgical mask as he left the facility. One of his lawyers later apologized for the disguise. Mr. Ghosn is under scrutiny in France, too. His legal problems deepened on Wednesday when Renault’s board said it might pursue legal action against him for what it called “questionable and concealed practices and violations of the group’s ethical principles.”
By contrast, Nissan executives have given interviews in which they criticized Mr. Ghosn, while headlines in Japan and elsewhere have focused on allegations of financial excesses under Mr. Ghosn’s management. In a statement, Mr. Ghosn has called the allegations “part of an unsubstantiated smear campaign.” The statement by the Renault board further distanced the company from its former chief executive. The company has already docked his pay and sent evidence to French prosecutors about possible misconduct.
The board also cut Mr. Ghosn’s pay further, saying it would recommend to shareholders that he not receive a €224,000, or $252,000, cash incentive.
After the board meeting, Renault said that an audit had found evidence of “serious deficiencies in terms of financial transparency and expenditure control procedures” at a joint venture in the Netherlands called RNBV that coordinates operations of the Renault-Nissan alliance.
“Certain expenses which have yet to be precisely quantified, but may amount to several million euros since 2010, raise serious questions as to their conformity with RNBV’s corporate interest,” the Renault board said.