Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, Public Investment Fund (PIF) has agreed to purchase a minority stake in Italian manufacturer of sports cars Pagani, the latest sign that the oil-rich country is becoming more interested in the automobile industry.
The Public Investment Fund’s investment is part of a long-term strategic engagement with the closely held Italian firm. According to the statement, the Pagani family will retain full control of the company, with the PIF joining Italian minority shareholders Mr. Nicola Volpi and Mr. Emilio Petrone.
The terms and conditions of the transaction have not yet been disclosed. Pagani’s financial adviser was UBS Investment Bank. Withers Studio Legale acted as a legal adviser to the selling shareholders.
Pagani was founded by Italian-Argentine entrepreneur Mr. Horacio Pagani in 1992. The CEO and chairman of Pagani called the PIF an “ideal partner” to further position “an iconic brand in the hypercars segment as well as to support its expansion strategy in the lifestyle segment.”
According to the previous reports, PIF had enlisted the help of consultants such as Boston Consulting Group to investigate the possibility of launching its own domestic electric vehicle manufacturer. The fund has been active in the EV space going back several years, acquiring a small stake in Tesla in 2018 and later investing in Lucid Group.
Last month, British automotive manufacturer McLaren Group has secured a $758 million equity investment, with most of the fund raised from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and global investment firm Ares Management
Furthermore, PIF along with Chinese shipping company Cosco Shipping Ports have jointly acquired a 40 percent equity stake last month in Red Sea Gateway Terminal Limited (RSGT) for $280 million.
