Nissan CFO to resign as automaker faces series of challenges

(Bloomberg) — Nissan Motor Co. Chief Financial Officer Stephen Ma is stepping down, people familiar with the matter said, marking another executive shakeup at the Japanese automaker during a challenging period.

One person who spoke on condition of anonymity said it was unclear whether Ma would be demoted or leave the company. Because the move has not yet been announced. The change comes 17 months after Ashwani Gupta resigned as Nissan’s chief operating officer, following last month’s announcement that 9,000 jobs would be cut and a fifth of production capacity cut.

As a result, Chief Executive Makoto Uchida will be the only top executive at a time when Nissan has attracted the attention of Effissimo Capital Management Pte., one of Japan’s most influential activist investors. Although five years have passed since the dramatic arrest and ouster of former chairman Carlos Ghosn, the automaker remains mired in management turmoil.

Jack Ma declined to comment, as did a Nissan spokesman.

An outdated product lineup, increased sales incentive spending and a lack of hybrids in North America have led the Japanese automaker to cut jobs and production. Nissan now expects operating income of 150 billion yen ($1 billion) for the year ending in March, down 70% from its previous forecast.

Ma joined Nissan in North America in 1996 and held finance roles in China and Japan before being promoted to chief financial officer alongside Uchida and Gupta in December 2019. Jun Seki, who also served as co-chief operating officer at the time, left the company soon thereafter.

Nissan’s market capitalization is about 1.5 trillion yen, which has been shrinking since peaking at nearly 6 trillion yen in 2015. Nissan Motor Co. is now Japan’s fifth-largest automaker by market capitalization, behind Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co., Suzuki Motor Corp. and Subaru Corp.

Nissan announced last month that Guillaume Cartier would be promoted to chief performance officer effective December 1.

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