General
McLaren reaches agreement for a £150 million loan
- GPblog.com
McLaren has reached an agreement with the National Bank of Bahrain for a loan of £150 million, which will enable the race stable to temporarily solve their cash flow problem in the short term. With this money McLaren will ensure that their Formula 1 branch in the run-up to the first Grand Prix in Austria will not get into trouble.
For several months now, several teams, including McLaren, have been experiencing worrisome financial times. The brand is hit hard by the corona crisis now that the car industry is on its hole and Formula 1 has been at a standstill for months.
Lawsuit
At an earlier stage, negotiations for the refinancing of the head office and their historic fleet failed due to a difference of opinion with the shareholders. Stakeholders did not see anything in this refinancing, which forced The McLaren Group to take the step to court. With a possible sale of some real estate and the older cars, the car manufacturer hopes to raise £280 million, which would make them financially stable for the time being. The court case on this dispute will be later this week.
With the agreement with the bank in Bahrain, McLaren will at least be able to pay the short-term bill and the Formula 1 branch will be able to focus on the coming weeks when the season finally starts with races that follow each other in quick succession. Success on the track would hopefully boost the morale of the team and further address the financial situation with fresh courage.