WASHINGTON: Nissan Motor Co and its former Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn have agreed to settle claims from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commision over false financial disclosures related to Ghosn's compensation, an SEC statement said on Monday.
Former Nissan human resources official Gregory Kelly agreed to a US$100,000 penalty and a five-year officer and director ban. Nissan, Ghosn, and Kelly settled without admitting or denying the SEC's allegations and findings. Nissan confirmed it had settled the allegations and said it"is firmly committed to continuing to further cultivate robust corporate governance."Nissan provided significant cooperation to the SEC, the agency said. The company now has a new governance structure with three statutory committees - audit, compensation and nomination - and has amended its securities reports for all relevant years.
The SEC said"Ghosn and his subordinates, including Kelly, crafted various ways to structure payment of the undisclosed compensation after Ghosn's retirement, such as entering into secret contracts, backdating letters to grant Ghosn interests in Nissan's Long Term Incentive Plan, and changing the calculation of Ghosn's pension allowance to provide more than US$50 million in additional benefits.