TOKYO: Fifty individual shareholders of Toshiba Corp sued the Japanese conglomerate in Tokyo yesterday, seeking 301.99 million yen (US$2.45 million) in damages after the firm’s stock plunged amid a multi-billion dollar accounting scandal.
The lawsuit against the company, as well as three former chief executives and two chief financial officers, comes as Toshiba shares hover about 40 percent lower than their value before the company questioned its accounting in early April.
Toshiba later said it inflated profits by around 155 billion yen over about seven years. A third-party probe blamed aggressive earnings goals and a corporate culture that discouraged employees from questioning superiors.
“Toshiba falsified its financial statements and misled investors,” the plaintiff group said in a complaint filed with the Tokyo District Court. “Toshiba’s fraud has done immeasurable damage to the trust in a stock company system.”
