Toyota Motor Corp. and Mazda Motor Corp. are considering integrating their automobile sales loan businesses in a deeper capital tie-up to cut costs amid the shrinking domestic market, sources close to the matter said Tuesday.
Toyota Finance Corp. will enter talks to obtain a 51 percent stake in SMM Auto Finance Inc. from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and Cedyna Financial Corp., both group firms of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc., the sources said. The remaining 49 percent is owned by Mazda.
The integration would mark an expansion in the alliance between the two Japanese carmakers following a capital tie-up last year that strengthened cooperation in such areas as developing electric vehicles.
They have since launched a new company to cooperate on base technology for electric vehicles and will also build cars together in the U.S. state of Alabama from 2021.