Head of Renault car company Carlos Ghosn resigns

Carlos Ghosn, the arrested chief executive and chairman of French car company Renault announced his resignation. His announcement puts an end to his leadership and ushers in a new era for Renault.

Carlos Ghosn has resigned as head of Renault car company REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo

Long considered the most powerful man in the car-making industry, his arrest in November last year in Japan, quickly put an end to his roles as chairman of the Japanese auto groups Nissan and Mitsubishi.

Ghosn was arrested on charges of financial misconduct and thrown into a Japanese prison.

Tokyo police arrested him on suspicion of under-reporting millions of dollars in income over eight years and for seeking to shift personal investment losses onto Nissan; charges he continues to deny.

His second bail request was denied on Tuesday so he will likely remain behind bars for several months.

Despite his sensational arrest, the 64 year old kept his role as head of Renault as one of his deputies continued to run the company on his behalf.

That is until Wednesday evening, when France’s Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire confirmed that Ghosn had in fact submitted his resignation.

It comes just ahead of a Renault board meeting here in Paris today that was going to see him be replaced by Thierry Bollore as permanent CEO and Jean-Dominque Senard as its chariman.

The legacy

During his run as head of Renault since 2005, Ghosn was the cornerstone in its alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi as the three big names carved out a major role for themselves in the industry as a force to be reckoned with.

Together, they sold more cars than any of its rivals last year.

Although the future of the mighty trio is now coloured with doubt since his arrest, Ghosn is widely credited with having revived Nissan and bringing together two different corporate cultures.