KKR announced on 31 March that its vehicle KJ005 plans a tender offer for all shares of Taiyo Holdings at ¥4,750 apiece, valuing the Tokyo-listed electronic materials maker at about ¥528.6bn ($3.3bn), with the board's support.
Why KKR (KJ005 Co., Ltd.) is buying Taiyo Holdings Co., Ltd.
Taiyo said privatisation would let it focus on long-term strategy and decide faster as it pursues growth in electronics materials driven by generative AI, data centres and communications infrastructure, while restructuring and expanding its medical and pharmaceutical contract manufacturing. It chose KKR after evaluating several proposals.
Deal terms and financing
The price is a 117% premium to the six-month average unaffected share price as of 27 May 2025, before media reports of a sale process, but a 4.7% discount to the last close before the announcement. DIC and Kowa will sell their shares to Taiyo through a share consolidation and buyback after the tender offer, Oasis will tender its 15.62% stake, and the founding family plans to reinvest alongside KKR.
Regulatory approvals and timing
The tender offer starts only after merger-control filings in several jurisdictions and investment approvals in Japan and the US. In a 9 October 2026 update, Taiyo said clearances were complete except for Chinese competition approval and Japanese investment rules, and that KKR now aims to launch the offer around late November 2026.
Market context
Taiyo, founded in 1948, is best known for solder resist used on printed circuit boards. KKR has invested in Japan for more than two decades, with deals including Kokusai Electric and Topcon.
