Nissan faces NZ$33m fine over Ghosn’s pay

Japanese regulators have demanded Nissan be fined ¥2.4 billion (NZ$33 million) for allegedly understating compensation for its former chairman Carlos Ghosn.

The Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission says it made the recommendation to the government's Financial Services Agency over disclosure documents from 2014 through 2017.

Nissan Motor Co says it accepts the penalty and corrected its securities documents in May, although its final decision will come after it receives official notice.

“The company takes this recommendation extremely seriously,” Nissan said in a statement. “In the absence of any special circumstances or other reasons, the company intends not to dispute the alleged facts and the amount of the … penalty.” 

Nissan was charged earlier with under-reporting Ghosn’s compensation.

Companies are required to report the money they pay executives in annual statements to the securities exchange. The allegations involve money Ghosn, pictured above, could have received in the future after retirement.

Ghosn was arrested in Tokyo November 2018 and is out on bail. He faces charges of under-reporting his compensation and other financial misconduct, including understating his salary by about ¥9.1b over a period of nearly a decade and temporarily transferring personal financial losses to the books of Nissan. He has denied wrongdoing.

Nissan’s sales and profits have tumbled and its brand image has been tarnished over the scandal. The company has acknowledged governance lapses and promised to beef up transparency.