Bahrain Will Reportedly Take Full Control Of McLaren

10 months, 1 week ago - 21 December 2023, motor1

A rumored deal between the country’s sovereign wealth fund and shareholders will give the company a single owner.

McLaren could soon have a new owner. A new report says that an announcement could come as soon as this week revealing Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, Mumtalakat Holding Company, will take full control of McLaren Group. The fund, wholly owned by the government, is reportedly negotiating a buyout with the remaining shareholders.

This time last year, Mumtalakat had a nearly 60 percent stake in the company and expanded its control earlier in 2023. The fund and other investors have been a vital source of cash for McLaren in recent years, helping to keep the operation running as the company faced numerous production hurdles.

In late 2022, the automaker had to sell some of its historic vehicles to fund the development upgrades for the delayed Artura supercar. Mumtalakat allegedly paid 100 million pounds ($126.6 million at today’s exchange rate) for an undisclosed number of historic vehicles, but the sale supposedly included a Formula One championship car.

McLaren has also suffered from pandemic-induced supply chain issues, selling its headquarters and F1 factory in April 2021. It earned $240 million in the deal while remaining the tenant for the next 20 years.

An October report from The Telegraph revealed that the company had received about 600 million pounds ($760 million) from its various investors since July 2022. Some 370 million pounds ($469 million) arrived between March and September of this year after the company ended 2022 with 349 million pounds ($421 million) in losses.

The company is undergoing restructuring to simplify its business. It named Michael Leiters its new CEO in July 2022, who admitted a few months after his appointment that its past products were “non-mature.” A single owner like Mumtalakat could help bring stability and focus to the company.

McLaren Racing oversees the company’s Formula One endeavors and has its own group of private investors. Motor1 has reached out to McLaren for a comment but did not immediately receive a reply. The company declined to comment to Sky News.