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Saudi wealth fund to become Aston Martin's second-largest shareholder

Aston Martin's shares jumped 20% on Friday after the British luxury carmaker announced an capital raising that will see Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) become its second-largest shareholder with an almost 17% stake. PIF's 78 million pound investment, together with a 575 million pound rights issue, will allow the 109-year-old company lower its debt and invest in new models. PIF will own a 16.7% stake in Aston Martin and will be entitled to two board seats, behind the 18.3% holding Chairman Lawrence Stroll's Yew Tree will have after the rights issue. The sovereign wealth fund, which owns stakes in electric carmaker Lucid Motors and British supercar group McLaren has been diversifying its oil-rich investment portfolio. For Aston Martin, the preferred ride of fictional secret agent James Bond which has gone bankrupt seven times in its history, the investment means it can secure its long-term future. Its current second-largest shareholder, German carmaker Mercedes-Benz AG will own about 9.7% after the capital raising. Debt-Ridden Inheritance "In 2020, I inherited a business in deep trouble that needed to be reset," Stroll told reporters. COVID-19 lockdowns and the disruption to global supply chains has slowed the company's recovery, he added. Half of the new capital will be used to repay debt that stood at 957 million pounds at the end of March. The company also pushed back the date at which it will start producing cash from 2023 to 2024. The carmaker said former owner Italian investment group Investindustrial and China's Geely had proposed up to 1.3 billion pounds in funds last week, which the board rejected. The pair would have injected 203 million pounds for a stake, making them the largest shareholder. Stroll said the proposal would have been highly dilutive to shareholders and believed it was a takeover offer in disguise. ($1 = 0.8446 pounds) (Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur, Tomasz Janowski and Louise Heavens) Earnings/Financials Aston Martin

Latest Spectre trailer loaded with cars, action

We've already received our first glimpse of the latest James Bond film, Spectre. But while that 90-second trailer was a bit light on vehicular mayhem, the trailer that aired during last night's NBA Finals game certainly wasn't. The 60-second spot started similarly to the first official Spectre trailer, but it quickly descended into something with a lot more action. Bond's one-off Aston Martin DB10 makes an appearance, as it did in the first trailer, but this time, we get a look at its duel with the Jaguar C-X75 of the film's villain. There are flames. Many flames. Check out the full trailer up top, and keep an eye open come November, when Spectre hits theaters.

There's an 820-hp Aston Martin Vulcan heading to auction

Aston Martin only made 24 examples of its track-only Vulcan, all of which sold out in the blink of an eye. Owners were personally invited by the automaker to purchase the supercar and had to shell out $2.3 million for the pleasure of owning one. Since the vehicle's debut last year, only one Vulcan has gone on sale in the US. And that one carried a hefty price tag of $3.4 million. But now, there's another Vulcan for sale and it's very, very purple. This gorgeous example is number 11 out of 24. There's no mention of how many miles it has covered or why the owner is selling it, but this is a rare opportunity to own one of the most visceral supercars ever. The supercar is heading to Mecum's Monterey auction in August and while it should go for more than its original price tag, there's no price estimate available. Potential buyers should know that the Vulcan is a track-only machine – a British motorsports engineering company can convert the car for road use – built in partnership with Aston Martin's racing team. The Vulcan gets its power from a 7.0-liter V12 that generates 820 horsepower, and the rest of the vehicle is just as hardcore. Related Video: