Amid acquisition talks, Toshiba president resigns for ‘personal reasons’

The president of Toshiba Corp. stepped down Wednesday, a week after the Japanese technology and manufacturing giant said it was studying an acquisition proposal from a global fund where he previously worked.

Nobuaki Kurumatani tendered his resignation at a board meeting, and the board accepted, effective Wednesday, Tokyo-based Toshiba said in a statement.

Kurumatani headed the Japan operations of CVC Capital Partners, which proposed the acquisition last week, before taking his post as chief executive of Toshiba in 2018.

Some questions had been raised, both within and outside Tokyo-based Toshiba, about Kurumatani leading the board discussions on the acquisition.

Kurumatani did not attend the online news conference, where two board members explained his resignation and fielded questions.