Harley-Davidson (HOG) EV unit LiveWire to go public via SPAC
13:41, 13 December 2021
Harley-Davidson (HOG) will take its electric motorcycle unit LiveWire public in a deal which values it at $1.77bn (£1.34bn), making it the first publicly traded electric vehicle (EV) motorcycle company in the US.
LiveWire is set to go public by merging with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) AEA-Bridges Impact (IMPX) and listing under the “LVW” ticker on the New York stock exchange.
Harley stock was up 12% pre-market to $41.18 while AEA-Bridges stock rose 4% to $10.20.
Funds development
“This transaction will give LiveWire the freedom to fund new product development and accelerate its go-to-market model,” Harley-Davidson chairman, president and CEO Jochen Zeitz said in a press release.
“LiveWire will be able to operate as an agile and innovative public company while benefitting from the at-scale manufacturing and distribution capabilities of its strategic partners.”
The transaction will be financed by AEA-Bridges' $400m cash held in trust, a $100m investment from Harley-Davidson plus a $100m private investment from Taiwan scooter maker KYMCO. Proceeds from the offering will be used to accelerate LiveWire’s go-to-market model and for investment in new product development and manufacturing.
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HOG retains 74%
On closing, Harley-Davidson will retain 74% of LiveWire, AEA-Bridges shareholders will own approximately 17% and AEA-Bridges' founders and KYMCO will own approximately 4%.
Harley-Davidson sold 180,248 motorcycles worldwide in 2020, of which 61% were sold in North America. The iconic motorcycles were featured in the classic 1969 movie Easy Rider and hit TV show Sons of Anarchy on cable network FX.
Read more: Harley-Davidson revs up on Q3 earnings
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