Volvo Announces a IPO and Polestar Merger
Volvo Cars has confirmed months of speculation by announcing that it’s planning to go public on NASDAQ Stockholm. On Monday, the automaker stated that it would be seeking to raise 25 billion Swedish kronor (nearly $2.9 billion USD) via the selling of new shares as a way to fast-track its electrification plans. Those include ensuring half its annual volume being represented by EVs and transitioning the majority of its sales stemming from online orders by 2025.
While the targeted IPO valuation is unknown, prior information coming from Zhejiang Geely Holding Group (Volvo’s Chinese parent company) suggested it was aiming for something in the neighborhood of $20 billion. We’ve also learned that the collaboratively owned Polestar would also be going public, except it will be using the always sketchy special-purpose-acquisition-company merger to help pump the stock.
We’re expecting more concrete details as the week progresses. But Reuters is currently speculating Volvo’s valuation at $20 billion while The Wall Street Journal has it set at $25 billion. The duo also had no idea how much stock Geely would retain, though we’re operating under the assumption that the group would like to remain the largest shareholder moving forward. Volvo has asserted that the money will be reinvested into transitioning toward becoming an electric-only automaker by 2030.
