The SEC is investigating whether the Japanese car group has adequately controlled the compensation of its top executives in the United States to avoid undue payments and whether any failures violate US law, according to the Bloomberg agency.
The Wall Street Journal also writes that the SEC has also sent a request for information to Carlos Ghosn.
A spokesman for Nissan confirmed that the group had received a request from the SEC and cooperated fully but it did not provide details. The SEC was not available immediately for a comment. A representative of Carlos Ghosn could not be reached.
The Nissan share closed down 0.8% Monday after this information, in line with the decline in the Japanese market (-0.6% for the Nikkei index).
Such an SEC investigation does not mean that regulatory authorities have found an offense. It may, if it is the case, give rise to civil suits against companies and their salaried employees. It can also lead to criminal prosecution months or even years later.
Nissan trades in the US financial markets as ADRs (American Depository Receipts), giving the SEC the right to investigate possible violations in the United States.
In Japan, Nissan has been charged with lowering revenues for Carlos Ghosn. The automaker has since committed to reviewing its governance.
As for Carlos Ghosn, who has been in prison in Tokyo since November 19, he faces three charges in Japan and denies any wrongdoing. He was dismissed as head of Nissan and Renault and Mitsubishi Motors, the other two partners of the Franco-Japanese automobile alliance.
The SEC has already investigated Japanese companies, including Toyota Motor for management of the car group’s safety concerns.
Last year, after three years of investigation, the SEC had concluded that Dow Chemical did not appropriately release some $ 3 million in benefits to its former chief executive, Andrew Liveries, and the US group. chemistry had agreed to pay $ 1.75 million in settlement of the case.
This year, agribusiness group Tyson Foods has agreed to pay a civil fine of $ 1.5 million after failing to properly disclose compensation from its former president.
(Ritsuko Ando, with Bhanu Pratap in Bangalore, Claude Chendjou and Dominique Rodriguez for French service, edited by Benoît Van Overstraeten)