Aston Martin sale imminent

Despite denying they were in talks to sell a stake, Aston Martin has confirmed it is in talks for a ‘Capital Increase’ with a deal announcement seemingly imminent.

We’ve been banging on for more than a year that Aston Martin needs a new investor if it has any chance of remaining credible and viable. And now it looks like that ‘Big Brother’ for Aston Martin is imminent.

Despite repeatedly denying our story that a new shareholder was being sought, Aston Martin Lagonda has finally come out and confirmed to shareholders that it is in talks for a new stakeholder, which probably means an announcement is imminent.

As far as we know, the front-runners are Invest Industrial – an investment company which recently divested itself of its Ducati holding to Audi – and India’s other big car investor Mahindra and Mahindra.

In terms of fit – in a deal thought to be worth around £250 million for a 40 per cent stake in AML with 50 per cent voting rights – InvestIndustrial seems to be bringing with it the promise of input from Mercedes AMG – something AML has long sought – which would be of big benefit to Aston Martin.

Mahindra and Mahindra, on the other hand, seems to have little to offer to Aston Martin beyond cash, although if they are prepared to invest in the way Tata has with Jaguar Land Rover then there is much promise.

But an Invest Industrial stake in Aston Martin could potentially bring a quick fix for AML with access to Mercedes platforms and engines through their AMG connection.

We should know who has won a piece of the ‘World’s Coolest Brand’ very soon.