McLaren Is About to Be Taken Over by Bahrain: Report
McLaren Group could be days away from having a new owner.
The British supercar maker’s shareholders have approved a plan that would allow Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, Mumtalakat Holding Company, to take over, according to Bloomberg. The company will also gain control of the manufacturer’s Formula 1 team, which is the championship’s second most successful constructor, as part of the deal.
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The wealth fund’s plan calls for a full recapitalization of the Woking, England-based holding company, which owns McLaren Automotive and McLaren Racing (which also competes in INDYCAR), according to a joint press release. It will introduce a streamlined share structure and governance process that will make it easier for McLaren to expand into other markets going forward. It would also allow the fund, which is already the company’s majority shareholder, to take over full control, which, Sky Sports reports, could happen as soon as this week.
“Completing the recapitalization is a significant step in the ongoing transformation of the Group and provides a solid platform from which to grow our product offering and brand presence,” McLaren Group Executive Chairman Paul Walsh said in a statement.
The move shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who’s paid attention to the recent fortunes of the McLaren Group, which sold 2,500 vehicles last year. Despite building some of the more impressive road-going supercars currently on the market, the company has had money issues for years and has had to ask shareholders for cash on multiple occasions. The company went through £267 million, or about $339 million, through the first nine months of 2024, according to Bloomberg. This has been attributed, in part, to selling fewer vehicles and having more inventory.
Last year, the company sold 54 vehicles from its prized heritage car collection to Mumtalakat to raise cash. That turns out to have just been one of several precursors to this week’s move, according to Reuters. In June, the company announced it had increased its stake in McLaren after buying more than $500 million worth of shares and warrants from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Ares Management. That move increased the fund’s stake in the company to nearly 60 percent.
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