It was just yesterday (see article) that we broke the news about Spyker securing €59.1million in financing so that Saab Automobile could resume production, and now the company has entered into an agreement with Hawtai Motor Group Company.
The agreement secures medium term funding and includes financing in the form of subscription agreements to the amount of €150million as well as a strategic alliance for China.
The subscription agreement with Hawtai totals €120million and, as part of the transaction, Hawtai will invest the money for a 29.9 per cent stake in Spyker on a fully diluted basis. The remaining €30million will form a convertible loan agreement with a six month maturity and an interest rate of seven per cent.
Each transaction will be subject to agreement on definitive transaction documents and certain conditions including consents from Chinese governmental agencies, the European Investment Bank and the Swedish National Debt Office.
According to Victor Muller, the CEO of Spyker and chairman of Saab Automobile, the company’s unique brand values should do well in the Chinese market with driver oriented vehicles that will appeal to a whole new group of independently thinking customers.
Meanwhile, Richard Zhang, the vice president of Hawtai, commented that the partnership with the iconic Saab brand would give the company access to innovative technologies and an international network, which would otherwise have taken decades to build.
