Cash generated from Volkswagen’s rumored Porsche flotation is key to the VW Group making a speedy transition to electrification, the Group’s CFO had admitted.
VW claims no decision has been officially made about a Porsche IPO, but comments from Arno Antlitz, currently acting as chief financial officer as well as chief operating officer since Oliver Blume’s appointment as CEO at the beginning of September, make it clear how much is riding on the potential stock market listing, which could be decided this week.
Antlitz disclosed that he has been heavily involved in preparing the IPO in an internal VW interview reported by Reuters.
“This [IPO] is a key element for the group, especially because the possible proceeds would give us more flexibility to further accelerate the transformation,” Antlitz said. “However, a decision has not yet been made.”
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VW’s board is meeting today to discuss the Porsche IPO, which could happen at the back end of September or early the following month if it gets the green light. While it is possible the scheme could be approved in Monday’s meeting, any yes-vote wouldn’t necessarily form a commitment to launch Porsche onto the market sources told Reuters.
Last week we reported that Porsche was targeting a valuation of between €60 billion and €85 billion ($60-85 bn) and has already received more pre-orders for shares than there are shares available. Big names from the investment world alleged to be interested in acquiring a slice of Porsche include the founder of energy drink maker Red Bull, Dietrich Mateschitz, and Bernard Arnault, boss of LVMH.
But others in the investment world have concerns over Porsche’s credibility as a true luxury brand, how much control VW will have after the flotation, and the generally precarious state of markets feeling the effects of the conflict in Ukraine and massive inflation.