Kazuo Hirai, president and CEO of Sony Corporation, talks about the use of Sony imaging sensors in autonomous driving applications during a news conference at the 2018 CES in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Jan 8. (Reuters photo)

TOKYO: Sony Corp said on Friday that CEO Kazuo Hirai will be replaced by the company’s chief financial officer, Kenichiro Yoshida, effective on April 1.

Sony Corp’s CFO Kenichiro Yoshida attends a news conference at its headquarters in Tokyo on Feb 2, 2017. (Reuters photo)

Mr Hirai, who stepped in as CEO in 2012, will become chairman of the electronics and entertainment company.

During Mr Hirai’s six-year tenure, Sony has exited or cut back in areas such as PCs and TVs, and capitalised on the spread of smartphones with its image sensors.

Mr Yoshida is widely credited for being behind many of the changes, which have won over investors.

Sony is forecasting record profit for the year through March.