2015
Feb.3, 2015
Minebea Co., Ltd.
Announcement of Plea Agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice Regarding Certain Small-Sized Ball Bearings
On February 2, 2015 (U.S. Eastern Standard Time), Minebea Co., Ltd. ("Minebea") entered into a plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ"), agreeing to pay a fine of 13.5 million USD (approximately 1.6 billion JPY) based on the violation of U.S. antitrust law in connection with sales of certain small-sized ball bearings.
Minebea and its subsidiaries have fully cooperated with the DOJ throughout its investigation. Upon overall consideration of applicable laws and relevant facts, and receiving advice from outside experts and others, Minebea has decided to enter into a plea agreement.
Minebea also will pay a surcharge of 4,912 million Korean won (approximately 500 million JPY) to the Korea Fair Trade Commission ("KFTC") after Minebea receives a formal order from the KFTC. The surcharge relates to the violation of the Korean Fair Trade Law (competition law) in connection with sales of small-sized ball bearings in Korea. Minebea published the "Announcement of the Korea Fair Trade Commission on the Trading of Small-sized Ball Bearings" on November 17, 2014.
Minebea takes these relevant decisions very seriously, and all directors (except for outside directors) will voluntarily return 10% of their compensation for a month.
Minebea sincerely regrets the concern this matter has generated and deeply apologizes to our shareholders, customers and other stakeholders. Minebea has a strong antitrust compliance program and has undertaken robust training for all employees to prevent recurrence of the conduct that led to the DOJ and KFTC investigations.
There will be no revision to the financial forecast of the fiscal year ending March 2015.
| Company Name: | Minebea Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Representative: | Yoshihisa Kainuma Representative Director, President and Chief Executive Officer (Code No. 6479, TSE Div. No.1) |
| Contact: | Yasuo Komine General Manager Corporate Communications Office |
| Phone: | +81-(0)3-6758-6703 |
Product information, contact and other context are subject to change without prior notice.
