According to report posted by Mainichi Daily News, citing sources familiar with the matter, scandal-mired Olympus is planning to increase the proportion of outside directors to around half its board in a bid to reinforce oversight of its management.

The paper said Olympus will seek approval for a list of candidates for its new board, including outside directors, from its management reform committee of external experts before presenting it to an extraordinary shareholders meeting to be held in March or April.

According to a third-party investigative panel set up by Olympus to probe its financial scandal, the company covered up 117.7 billion yen ($1.7 billion) in investment losses dating back to the 1990s, by keeping the losses off its books.

To read the full Mainichi Daily News story: click here.

Previously on monitordaily: Olympus Accounting Fraud Threatens Company’s Survival, published December 21, 2011