Xerox Corp.'s top executive and six board members agreed to step down in a victory for businessman Carl Icahn in his battle against the company's planned $6.1 billion (¥670 billion) takeover by Fujifilm Holdings Corp.
The resignations, revealed in a Tuesday court filing, include CEO Jeffrey Jacobson and Chairman Robert Keegan and are part of an agreement with activist investors to settle a lawsuit that will put in place executives close to Icahn. Keith Cozza, CEO of Icahn Enterprises, is expected to be elected chairman, while John Visentin, who has been a consultant to Icahn in the feud against Xerox, is slated to be appointed as its new CEO.
The surprise settlement potentially puts the deal struck in January with Fujifilm at risk and comes after a New York judge last week temporarily halted the transaction. The news is a major win for Icahn and Darwin Deason, who railed against the terms of Fujifilm's takeover of U.S.-based Xerox and accused Jacobson of striking the deal without the board's authorization to preserve his own job.