Potential sale of McLaren Automotive imminent
McLaren’s Bahraini owners could sell to Abu Dhabi’s CYVN Holdings, which already has investments in Gordon Murray Technologies and Nio
McLaren Automotive could be about to change hands, as its current owner, the Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company, enters talks with CYVN Holdings LLC. This, hot on the heels of the firm ringing in a new era with the McLaren W1 hypercar, its successor to the P1. The sale would effectively see McLaren Automotive passed from Bahraini sovereign wealth fund ownership to Abu Dhabi government ownership.
The two entities have entered into a non-binding agreement to explore a potential partnership, which would see the transfer of ownership of McLaren Automotive should the deal go through. CYVN would also receive a non-controlling stake in the wider McLaren Group, including its racing arm.
CYVN Holdings operates in the fields of smart and advanced mobility solutions. As such, it’s claimed the move would, in addition to giving access to additional capital, also bring advanced engineering expertise pertaining to electric cars within McLaren’s reach. The goal of building on ‘McLaren’s highly successful track record in elite motorsport’ is mentioned, too, though without specific reference to the Formula 1 McLaren Racing outfit.
CYVN acquired a controlling stake in Gordon Murray Technologies in July 2023 providing the manufacturer to increase its investment in the development of electric vehicles and its iStream platform technology; anecdotally linking Murray and McLaren again for the first time since the legendary designer departed McLaren in 2005. It’s also invested in Forseven, a British EV startup with ex-JLR personnel (including former executive director of vehicle programmes Nick Collins as CEO) and Chinese EV manufacturer Nio.
Nothing is yet known about the timeline of this process or indeed the figures that are expected to change hands. The announcement’s wording is preliminary yet in a definitive tone, which strongly suggests that the sale will take place. That there has been an announcement at all suggests there’s confidence behind the scenes that a successful sale is imminent.
The sale of McLaren isn’t a new subject, with talks having taken place in the recent past with German giants BMW and Audi. Audi of course latterly took control of the Sauber Formula 1 outfit, to relaunch as a factory team for 2026. In 2021, McLaren Group agreed the sale and leaseback of its global headquarters, which included the McLaren Technology Centre and McLaren Production Centre, for £170 million, with a 20-year leaseback agreed as a part of McLaren Group’s refinancing strategy at the time.
