Toyota Financial Services Chief Borst to Retire

George Borst, a 28-year veteran of Toyota Motor Corp. who has been CEO of the company's U.S. auto lending arm for 16 years, will step down on Oct. 1.

Toyota Financial Services Corp. has named Mike Groff, senior vice president of its U.S. sales and marketing, to succeed Borst. Groff has worked for the carmaker since 1983.

Borst, 64, is best known for keeping the Lexus brand on an even keel in the U.S. when the dollar's 30% plunge against the yen in the mid-1999s made Japan-made vehicles much more expensive. Since he took charge of the finance business, its assets have zoomed from $20 billion to more than $95 billion.