Qatar accumulates a 17 percent voting stake in Volkswagen
By Andrew C., 29 Aug, 2010. 0 Comments
Qatar will be taking a seat on Porsche Automobil Holding SE's supervisory board after having accumulated a 17% voting stake in Volkswagen AG. This move highlights the more active role that the Gulf state aims to have in the German auto industry.
Furthermore, the shift caused VW to replace its freely traded ordinary shares on Germany's blue-chip index by its preferred shares. The change is effective Dec. 23. VW is also set to issue new preferred shares under a capital increase during the first half of 2010. After exercising options in VW, Qatar Holding LLC now holds 17%, up from 6.8%, in Volkswagen's share capital. In a statement, Ahmad Al-Sayed, CEO of Qatar Holding, said that as a long-term strategic investor, it continues to believe that “the investment in VW and the envisaged combination of Porsche SE and VW represents a unique investment asset for Qatar Holding." Since 1988, Volkswagen ordinary shares have been a prominent feature of Germany's DAX index. Expulsion from the index is expected to put pressure on the value of the ordinary shares, which last October traded at above 1,000 euros, resulting to temporarily making VW the world's largest by market value.
[via autonews - sub. required]
0 Responses
Leave A Reply
Latest Auto Shows
