In August 2017, Japan Display announced a last-resort strategic focus on OLED displays as the Japanese display maker failed to shift to OLED displays in time. In 2017 JDI announced it is beginning to seek funds for the change in focus, and since then we have heard of several plans in place.
Reuters now details the upcoming $2.1 bailout now being prepared for JDI. According to Reuters, a group of investors from Taiwan and China, led by TPK and the Harvest Group will invest 80 billion Yen (around $720 million) in JDI. In addition, the Japanese government INCJ fund will provide 77 billion Yen in bonds and will also accept a debt-to-equity swap worth 75 billion. The total deal is worth around $2.1 billion.
Following the deal, the new buyers from Taiwan and China will hold a 49.8% stake, while INCJ's stake will drop to 12.7% (down from 25.3%).
JDI, meanwhile, is expected to post its 5th straight year of losses - and have seen its market share drop from 400 billion Yen in 2014 (when it went public) to around 67 billion yen today. According to an earlier report from Reuters, JDI will start supplying Apple with OLED displays for its 2019 smartwatch device.
