---
title: "Panasonic Sells its Entire Stake in Tesla to Raise Cash"
description: "Panasonic Corp., which jointly owns a battery factory with Tesla Inc., sold the entirety of its stake in the electric vehicle maker."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "Business Maverick"
author: "Bloomberg"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/bloomberg/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-06-25-panasonic-sells-its-entire-stake-in-tesla-to-raise-cash/"
published: "2021-06-25T05:11:10"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 198
---

# Panasonic Sells its Entire Stake in Tesla to Raise Cash

> Panasonic Corp., which jointly owns a battery factory with Tesla Inc., sold the entirety of its stake in the electric vehicle maker.

By Bloomberg · Published 25 June 2021, 07:11 SAST

## Content

The Japanese company held 80.9 billion yen ($729 million) of Tesla shares as of March last year and that stake had been reduced to zero by the end of this March, Panasonic disclosed in a filing Friday. The filing didn’t give any indication as to why Panasonic jettisoned its interest. Tesla’s stock appreciated more than fivefold over the 12-month period.

The Nikkei reported the news earlier, saying Panasonic will book several hundred billion yen in profit and will use the proceeds to help pay for its $7 billion [acquisition](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-04-23/panasonic-is-said-to-near-deal-for-ai-software-firm-blue-yonder) of artificial intelligence software developer Blue Yonder.

Panasonic is Tesla’s oldest battery supplier and the two have invested billions of dollars in a battery factory in Nevada. The relationship has been contentious at points, with Panasonic facing frequent — and at times public — prods from Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk to boost battery production. Panasonic also has a battery partnership with Toyota Motor Corp.

[Read more: New Panasonic CEO Says Efficiency to Fuel Tesla Business, Growth](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-06-24/new-panasonic-ceo-says-efficiency-to-fuel-tesla-business-growth)

Shares of Panasonic rose as much as 4.8% in Tokyo on Friday. Tesla closed 3.5% higher in the U.S. on Thursday. Its Nasdaq-traded stock touched a high in January of $883.09.