Peter Lyon
December 25, 2024
It was revealed in a surprise announcement on Monday that Honda and Nissan have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to start discussions toward a business integration between the two companies through the establishment of a joint holding company.
To further accelerate their efforts toward achieving a carbon-neutral society and a zero-traffic-fatality society, Honda and Nissan signed an MOU on March 15, 2025 to further their vehicle intelligence and electrification efforts. Since then, the two companies have held discussions aimed at collaboration in various fields. The holding company, which could also include Nissan partner Mitsubishi Motors—who are still considering their options—would be the world’s 3rd biggest group after Toyota and VW.
On August 1, both companies signed a further MOU to deepen the framework of the strategic partnership. The companies also announced that they had agreed to carry out joint research in fundamental technologies in the area of platforms for next-generation software-defined vehicles (SDVs), particularly in the areas crucial for intelligence and electrification, to advance focused discussions toward more concrete collaboration.
Throughout the process, Japan’s second biggest-selling carmaker Honda and third-biggest selling Nissan have engaged in discussions in consideration of various possibilities. At the same time, the business environment for both companies and the wider automotive industry has rapidly changed and the speed of technological innovation has continued to accelerate. The MOU between Honda and Nissan announced this week is aimed to serve as an option to maintain global competitiveness and for the two companies to continue to deliver more attractive products and services to customers worldwide.
If the business integration can be realized, both companies can aim to integrate their respective management resources such as knowledge, human resources, and technologies, create deeper synergies, enhance the ability to respond to market changes, and expect to improve mid- to long-term corporate value. Additionally, Honda and Nissan can aim to further contribute to the development of Japan’s industrial base as a “leading global mobility company” by integrating Nissan and Honda’s four-wheel-vehicle and Honda’s motorcycle and power products businesses, enabling the brands of both companies to become more attractive and to deliver more attractive and innovative products and services to customers worldwide.
Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe said “Creation of new mobility value by bringing together the resources including knowledge, talents, and technologies that Honda and Nissan have been developing over the long years is essential to overcome challenging environmental shifts that the auto industry is facing. Honda and Nissan are two companies with distinctive strengths.”
Marking the announcement, Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida said “Today marks a pivotal moment as we begin discussions on business integration that has the potential to shape our future. If realized, I believe that by uniting the strengths of both companies, we can deliver unparalleled value to customers worldwide who appreciate our respective brands.”
Carlist Thoughts
Based on the committee’s discussions, as well as the results of due diligence, the companies will examine and analyze more specific synergies. By promptly realizing the synergies from the integration, Nissan and Honda can aim to become a world-class mobility company with sales revenue exceeding 30 trillion yen and operating profit of more than 3 trillion yen.
