Responsible for the largest automotive recall in history, Takata is now looking to file for bankruptcy.
Sources with knowledge on the matter told Reuters that the Japanese parts supplier could do this as early as next week.
However, this doesn’t necessarily have to be the end of Takata, as US auto parts maker Key Safety Systems is interested in acquiring the Japanese firm’s assets as part of a restructuring in bankruptcy, under a new company, for some 180 billion yen ($1.6 billion).
The newly founded company under Key is expected to continue supplying airbags, seatbelts, and other products to automakers, while the liabilities are said to be left behind, in a separate entity. A deal with Key, however, may not be reached until Takata files for bankruptcy, sources told the news agency.
Takata declined to comment on the subject, but in the meantime, the Tokyo Stock Exchange announced that it had suspended all trading in shares of the Japanese supplier, following media reports that it’s preparing for bankruptcy.
At the beginning of this year, Takata pleaded guilty to criminal wrongdoing and agreed to pay a $1 billion settlement. They already paid a $25 million fine and another $125 million to a victims’ compensation fund, with the remaining $850 million, owed to automakers, to be paid until early 2018, or within 5 days after securing a sponsor.
Takata supplied around 100 million defective airbag inflators to automakers around the world, which are known to explode with excessive force, in the event of a crash, and spread shrapnel through the cabin. These have accounted for at least 16 deaths, and more than 180 injuries, worldwide.
H/T to John
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