Porsche Sells Stake in Sportscar Maker Bugatti

Porsche Sells Bugatti and Rimac Stakes Amid Profit Drop, Refocuses Strategy

Porsche's Strategic Divestment and Financial Challenges

DUBAI/FRANKFURT April 24 (Reuters) - Porsche has agreed to sell its stakes in sportscar makers Bugatti and Rimac to a consortium led by a U.S. fund linked to Egypt's billionaire Sawiris family, the companies said on Friday.

Under the deal, Porsche will divest its 45% stake in Bugatti Rimac, the joint venture set up in 2021 which owns the luxury carmaker, as well as a 20.6% stake in Rimac Group to a consortium led by U.S.-based HOF Capital, the firms said.

Porsche has been reviewing its strategy after group margins fell sharply and it reported a 93% slump in operating profit in 2025.

Deal Details and Valuations

While financial terms for the Bugatti and Rimac deal were not disclosed, Reuters reported in 2022 that Croatia's Rimac had a valuation of over 2 billion euros ($2.34 billion).

Bugatti Rimac, meanwhile, has a valuation of over $1 billion, a person with knowledge of the matter said.

Porsche and Rimac both declined to comment on the valuation.

Statements from Leadership

"In setting up the joint venture Bugatti Rimac together with Rimac Group, we successfully laid the foundation for Bugatti's future," Porsche CEO Michael Leiters said in the companies' joint statement.

"Now, with the sale of our stake, we are focusing Porsche on the core business."

Porsche Under Pressure to Cut Costs, Free Up Capital

When Porsche formed the joint venture with Rimac, the German carmaker's then CEO Oliver Blume touted it as a marriage of Bugatti's expertise in hypercars with Rimac's innovative strength in the field of electric mobility.

Profit Margins and Market Challenges

Since then, however, Porsche has become a burden for its parent Volkswagen, with profit margins crashing to a mere 1.1% last year, from 14.1% in 2024, as the company was squeezed by U.S. tariffs and falling demand in China.

Now, Leiters, who took over as CEO at the beginning of the year, is under pressure to cut costs and free up capital.

Joint Venture Negotiations

Rimac said in November that it was in talks with Porsche over the structure of the joint venture.

Consortium and Future Partnerships

BlueFive Capital, which has $15 billion in assets under management, said on Friday it was one of the investors in the consortium led by HOF Capital, a U.S.-based fund co-founded by Onsi Sawiris.

BlueFive Capital's Role

Launched in November 2024, BlueFive Capital has offices across the Gulf, in London and Beijing and offers private equity, real estate, infrastructure and financial products to private wealth, institutional and retail clients.

Future of Bugatti Rimac and Rimac Group

Rimac Group is set to take control of Bugatti Rimac and form a strategic partnership with BlueFive Capital and HOF Capital "to support its continued growth," when the deal is completed, BlueFive Capital said in a statement.

($1 = 0.8560 euros)

(Reporting by Federico Maccioni in Dubai and Christoph Steitz in Frankfurt; Editing by Joe Bavier and Susan Fenton)