Xerox announced that it is not going through with plans to merge with Fujifilm after reaching a deal with activist shareholders Carl Icahn and Darwin Deason.
Icahn and Deason own 15% of the US tech firm. The two adamantly opposed the merger with Fujifilm because they believed that it undervalued the company.
Xerox CEO Jeff Jacobson will be stepping down along with several other Xerox directors.
According to Bloomberg, John Visentin is expected to become the new CEO of the firm while Keith Cozza, CEO of Icahn Enterprises, is expected to become Chairman.
Xerox said in a statement on Saturday that it decided to terminate the merger agreement because of Fujifilm’s failure to provide audited financials for the joint venture on time.
“Over the past several weeks, the Xerox Board has repeatedly requested that Fujifilm immediately enter into negotiations on improved terms for a proposed transaction,” the firm said.
“Despite our insistence, Fujifilm provided no assurance that it will do so within an acceptable timeframe.
“The Xerox Board believes that the transaction cannot reasonably be expected to be completed under these circumstances, particularly given the court’s injunction of the transaction and the lack of shareholder support for the transaction on current terms, as well as the unresolved accounting issues at Fuji Xerox.”
Fujifilm is disputing Xerox’s “unilateral decision.”
“We do not believe that Xerox has a legal right to terminate our agreement and we are reviewing all of our available options, including bringing a legal action seeking damages,” the Japanese firm said in a statement.
