Sony is looking to split and list its financial unit, in a bid to pump further investment into its chip division and electronics businesses.

The Japanese giant is assessing a plan to spinoff its Sony Financial unit, which operates the online-only Sony Bank, into a separate company, which it will list on a Japanese exchange.

Sony will retain just under 20 per cent of this group, and use the sell-off to fund its various electronics plays, most notably its dominant image sensor division.

The company shared this plan during a strategy briefing today, after which the company’s shares jumped 7.3 per cent – the biggest intraday surge Sony has since this year.

“Sony’s image sensor and entertainment businesses will need much bigger investment in the future. Meanwhile, you need a strong base for financial services,” Chief Operating Officer Hiroki Totoki said at the briefing.

“That’s why we decided to consider using a virtual spinoff — which allows us to keep Sony’s name on the financial service arm while it gains the ability to raise cash independently.”

Sony has seen most of its major divisions suffer over the past year.

The company expects operating profit in the year ending March 31 to fall by 3.2 per cent to A$13 billion, with earnings at its music and pictures divisions expected to be flat, and image sensor operating profit to dip by 5.8 per cent.

Overall operating profit for the three months that ended March 31 fell 7.3 per cent to A$1.4 billion.

In addition, Sony’s financial group profits will drop by 20 per cent.

At January’s Consumer Electronics Show, Sony shocked attendees by not revealing any new televisions, instead using the conference to showcase the PlayStation VR2 device and their electric car component offerings.

Totoki said during today’s briefing that there are no plans to spin off its chip division, which makes sense, given its dominance.

Sony makes more than half the global CMOS image sensors used in smartphones, with a market share more than triple that of second-place Samsung.

According to analyst firm Omdia, the Japanese company held a market share of 51.6 per cent during the third quarter last year, compared to its closest rival Samsung, who holds 15.6 per cent.

Despite spinning off and selling off its struggling financial unit, “its importance within the group will not change,” Totoki assured investors.