FILE PHOTO: Steve Glynn, who has owned a number of McLarens and says he is willing to try out electric models when they become available, displays his most recently acquired McLaren at his home in Headley Down, Britain February 11, 2021 REUTERS/Nick Carey
BMW AG denied a Automobilwoche report that it’s interested in buying British supercar-maker McLaren Automotive Ltd.
BMW is eyeing the company’s supercar business, and will hold talks with Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat, which controls McLaren, at the beginning of next month, Automobilwoche reported Sunday, without specifying where it got the information. It also said Volkswagen AG’s Audi unit was looking at buying McLaren, including the manufacturer’s Formula 1 racing team.
A BMW spokesman said that the Automobilwoche article is "wrong.” Representatives for Audi didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment outside regular business hours.
McLaren has been attempting to repair its finances following the impact of the pandemic. In July, the Woking, England-based company raised 550 million pounds ($738 million) from existing investors and the sale of preference shares and equity warrants to new backers Ares Management Corp. and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. It also raised $620 million from a bond issue.
