Whistle-blower Woodford settles for £10m after his Olympus sacking

The British former chief executive of Olympus, Michael Woodford, will receive £10m in a settlement over his dismissal for whistle-blowing at the giant Japanese cameras and medical equipment maker.

Last week, both sides said they reached a settlement. Olympus disclosed the figure yesterday, following approval from its board, and said the dispute was being brought to a close.

Mr Woodford was fired in October after he blew the whistle on dubious accounting at Olympus. The Tokyo-based company has acknowledged it hid ¥118bn (£957m) in investment losses dating back to the 1990s.

He sued in a British court, accusing Olympus of unlawfully firing him and discrimination in not treating him the same way as a Japanese executive. He claimed the company's executives met without hearing from him and kicked him out.

Welcoming the company's decision, he said: "In today's settlement between myself and the company we reached a fair and amicable agreement, and I would like to take this opportunity to wish the new board well in taking Olympus forward. It is a wonderful company with wonderful products and people and has a bright future ahead of it."