Livedoor Co. plans to sell all its financial businesses to Tokyo-based investment firm Advantage Partners LLP so it can focus on its Internet-related activities, company sources said Wednesday.
The company is expected to sell Livedoor Financial Holdings Co., a six-company grouping that includes brokerage and consumer credit firms, for around 20 billion yen.
The planned selloff follows the indictment of former executives and the company itself on charges of falsifying financial statements for the business year through September 2004.
Livedoor has been looking for a buyer for its financial businesses because if the company itself is found guilty in the fraud case, it will be required to reduce its stake in Livedoor Securities Co. -- one of the six financial firms -- to less than 20 percent under the Securities Exchange Law.
Some senior Livedoor officials are expected to remain at Livedoor Financial Holdings after the sale to keep the financial businesses going, together with managers from Advantage Partners, the sources said.
Livedoor has been charged with reporting a consolidated pretax profit of about 5 billion yen for fiscal 2004 when it actually incurred a pretax loss of some 300 million yen. Former Livedoor President Takafumi Horie and four others have been indicted on the same charge.
Advantage Partners has been active in rehabilitating troubled companies.