According to the European press, Ford Motor Co. will finally announce the highly-anticipated winner of the Aston Martin auction on Friday during the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland. The latest rumored winner is a consortium led by Aston Martin race team Prodrive beating earlier favorites private equity firm Doughty Hanson and real estate dealmaker
Simon Halabi. It seems the teams racing relationship gave them the pole position in negotiations. The Prodrive consortium, which is supported by Naeem Capital, reportedly agreed to pay £500 million ($965 million), which is less than the original asking price of £800 million when the auction opened six months ago. However, Ford will now reportedly maintain a minority stake in the ultra luxury car maker, which could explain the lower price tag. —Matthew Wurtzel
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