Kinden announced on 25 May a tender offer for The Kodensha Co., an electrical facilities contractor controlled by Mitsubishi Electric, at ¥11,501 a share, the first step in a deal that Japan Credit Rating Agency estimated would cost about ¥85bn in total.
Why KINDEN CORPORATION is buying The Kodensha Co., Ltd.
Mitsubishi Electric said the sale was part of reorganising its affiliates and focusing investment on key growth areas, and that it would use the proceeds for its portfolio strategy, growth investment and shareholder returns. JCR noted that Kodensha is a competitor of Kinden with strength in the Tokyo metropolitan area, where demand is robust, and said the deal should strengthen Kinden's business base.
Deal terms and financing
Mitsubishi Electric agreed not to tender its 4,485,620 Kodensha shares. After the offer and a share consolidation leaving Kinden and Mitsubishi Electric as sole shareholders, Kodensha is to repurchase Mitsubishi Electric's stake, a structure set so that Mitsubishi Electric's after-tax proceeds roughly match what it would have received by tendering. Mitsubishi Electric said no other bidder offered a more favourable tender offer price.
Regulatory approvals and timing
The offer ran from 26 May to 6 July; 3,714,499 shares were tendered for ¥42.72bn and settlement began on 13 July. Kodensha shareholders approved the share consolidation on 25 August, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange delisted the shares on 25 September. The buyback of Mitsubishi Electric's shares was scheduled for late September.
Market context
Kodensha, founded in 1917 and based in Ginza, Tokyo, designs and installs electrical, transmission, substation, telecoms and air-conditioning systems and trades electrical equipment. It reported net sales of ¥44.2bn and operating profit of ¥3.9bn for the year to March 2026. Mitsubishi Electric received first-round proposals from 14 candidates, invited four to a second round and received final bids from three on 3 April.
