Toyota to Privatize Vehicle Parts, Forklift Supplier in $26B Deal

On June 3, 2025, Toyota announced plans to take one of its key group companies, Toyota Industries, private in a $26 billion deal.

The deal will be led by a private real estate firm called Toyota Fudosan, which is chaired by Akio Toyoda, the current Toyota Chairman and a member of the founding family.

This firm will buy all outstanding shares of Toyota Industries, a company that makes forklifts, car engines, batteries, and other vehicle parts.

While the deal itself had been expected (Toyota said it was thinking about getting involved in the buyout back in April), the price surprised many. Toyota Fudosan is offering 16,300 yen per share, which is less than the most recent trading price of 18,400 yen.

Earlier media reports had suggested the deal might be worth closer to $42 billion, which makes the actual offer look much lower than anticipated.

This deal comes as Japanese companies are facing more pressure from investors and regulators to clean up complicated cross-ownership structures—where companies hold shares in each other.

These changes are aimed at improving corporate governance and boosting shareholder returns, and they’ve led to more buyouts and restructuring deals.

As of last September, Toyota owned about 24% of Toyota Industries, which in turn owned around 9% of Toyota and more than 5% of Denso, another key Toyota supplier.

Toyota also announced plans to repurchase the remaining shares in Toyota Industries that it doesn’t already own.

Image Credit: Shutterstock/muhamad mizan bin ngateni