(BFM Bourse) – The Swedish manufacturer of luxury electric cars took its first steps on the Nasdaq on Friday through a merger with SPAC Gores Guggenheim. The operation gives it a capitalization of 20 billion dollars.
Still room to join Tesla and its more than 700 billion dollars (despite more than 40% decline since the end of 2021) in capitalization. But Swedish electric car maker Polestar is already starting from a sizable base of around $20 billion, less than Stellantis ($41 billion) but more than a Nissan ($15.7 billion) or a Renault (7.6 billion), while it has only produced 55,000 cars yet.
Majority-owned by Sweden’s Volvo and China’s Geely, Polestar announced its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange last September.
To achieve this, the company did not follow the longer procedure of an IPO (Initial Public Offering) but merged with a dedicated “blank check” company, or SPAC, Gores Guggenheim, itself controlled by two funds. American investment. As is customary, the new entity will take the name of Polestar.
Almost $900 million in new funds
“Entering the Nasdaq is an incredible moment of pride for Polestar,” said CEO Thomas Ingenlath in a statement. “We are building the foundations for our future growth”, he added, relying on “55,000 cars currently in circulation” and “international recognition”.
The operation brought to the company approximately 890 million dollars (846 million euros) of new funds (those that the investors had bet initially in the SPAC).
Founded in 1996 as a racing team partner of Volvo, then acquired by the Swedish manufacturer in 2015, Polestar started producing electric cars from 2017. The firm has sold only 29,000 cars l last year (compared to 10,000 in 2020) but plans to increase its sales tenfold by 2025.
For its part, Volvo (itself controlled by the Chinese Geely) has indicated that it will retain 48.3% of the new company for the time being.
(With AFP)
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