The Abu Dhabi-based investment firm CYVN Holdings has agreed to purchase 100 percent of McLaren Automotive from its current owners, Mumtalakat Holding, reports Reuters. Mumtalakat Holding is the sovereign wealth fund of Bahrain, which assisted McLaren through a “capital reorganization” earlier this year, taking full ownership of the decades-old British company, including the company’s various racing endeavors (Formula One, Formula E, Extreme E/H, and sports cars) in the process.
This deal with CYVN also includes the Emirati holding company taking a non-controlling interest in McLaren Group, though few details were provided regarding the quantity of money changing hands or what percentage of the McLaren parent company would be traded. Mumtalakat Holding will remain the majority owner of McLaren Group, with full controlling interest.
“This transformative investment by CYVN Holdings would bring access to additional capital, advanced engineering expertise and pioneering technology, particularly in the field of electric vehicles,” the firms said in the joint statement.
McLaren kicked off as a racing only endeavor, founded by New Zealander Bruce McLaren in 1966, and McLaren Automotive began its life way back in 1985, though the company didn’t truly begin building cars at scale until 2011. The company has faced severe financial hardship since the COVID-19 pandemic, taking on several rounds of funding from investors and selling its headquarters.
This new deal with CYVN is important for McLaren’s future, as the fund already owns Chinese EV brand Nio and recently purchased an upstart EV sports car company called Forseven, which was spun up out of the electric car division of Gordon Murray Group. This EV sports car expertise will be important for achieving McLaren Automotive CEO Michael Leiters goal of delivering an electric supercar with enough range for a racing stint at speed around 2030.
Given the nature of the business and its new owners, I would not be surprised to see McLaren delivering an SUV to the market, perhaps even an electric one, in the near future.
