Make decision
In addition to offering shares to one of the auto industry’s most recognizable names to investors, the initial public offering will restore important decision-making power to the Porsche-Piech family, which lost control of the sports car maker more than a decade ago following a period of time. A long acquisition struggle with “Volkswagen”.
To accommodate the interests of the billionaire family, which owns 53% of the voting shares in Volkswagen via separately listed Porsche Automobil Holding SE, the Porsche IPO is a complex one, and has raised governance concerns that reflect Those related to the complex structure of “Volkswagen”.
Volkswagen excludes Deutsche Bank from leading one of Germany’s largest initial public offerings
Investors will be able to subscribe to 25% of preferred shares in Porsche, which do not have voting rights. The family will buy 25% plus one of Porsche’s common stock with voting rights, which means they will have an opposing and influential minority stake in future major decisions.
The family agreed to pay a premium of 7.5% over the preferred stock price range, and plans to finance the acquisition with a mix of debt capital of up to 7.9 billion euros and a special dividend paid by Volkswagen.
The automaker says the proceeds from the offering will help Volkswagen finance the transition to an industry electric cars and investments in software.
Despite the increased interest in the IPO, some investors said the appointment of Porsche CEO Oliver Blume to head Volkswagen and his plan to continue in a dual role raise doubts regarding Porsche’s future independence.
