Geely, a leading automobile manufacturer in China, has increased its stake in Aston Martin, a British luxury automaker. The manufacturer has grown its stake to 17% in the brand, meaning an increased investment of around 234 million pounds in the company.
This deal now makes Geely the third largest shareholder in the company. In September last year, Geely acquired a 7.6% stake in Aston Martin, but the increased stake has overtaken Mercedes-Benz’s stake size in the company. The Chinese manufacturer bought 42 million shares from Aston Martin’s chairman, Lawrence Stroll’s, Yew Tree consortium and will now gain a seat on the board.
Lawrence Stroll said:
“(Geely Holdings) offer us a deep understanding of the key strategic growth market that China represents, as well as the opportunity to access their range of technologies and components.”
The deal will is very much likely to improve Aston Martin’s reach in China and, as Stroll points out, bring new tech-sharing opportunities to the brand. Geely already owns several British and European carmakers, including Lotus, LEVC, Volvo, and Polestar.
Geely chairman, Eric Li, said:
‘Since first acquiring our minority holding last September, we have worked collaboratively with executive chairman Lawrence Stroll and his colleagues and now look forward to exploring joint technology synergies and new growth opportunities to help this iconic automotive brand to achieve its full potential.’
