There are ordinary corporate transactions, and then there are deals involving Porsche, Bugatti and Rimac: three companies that have independently altered our understanding of how fast a road car can be.
Porsche has completed the sale of its 45 percent stake in Bugatti Rimac and 21 percent holding in Rimac Group. The deal places approximately €1 billion in Porsche’s accounts, including €250 million earmarked for pension obligations. It also closes one of the most extraordinary chapters in modern automotive history.
Who Owns Bugatti Now?
A consortium led by New York-based investment firm HOF Capital, alongside institutional investors from the US and Europe, has acquired the shares. Abu Dhabi-based BlueFive Capital is the consortium’s largest investor and has taken a 30 percent direct stake in Bugatti Rimac, while HOF Capital has increased its holding in Rimac Group to 23.5 percent, making it the group’s largest shareholder alongside Mate Rimac.
Rimac Group retains its controlling 55 percent share of Bugatti Rimac. The incoming investors will therefore provide capital and strategic support, while Mate Rimac and his restructured leadership team remain responsible for shaping Bugatti’s cars and long-term direction.
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The End Of Volkswagen’s Bugatti Era
Volkswagen acquired the rights to Bugatti in 1998 under Ferdinand Piëch, whose ambitions almost always surpassed conventional engineering limits.
The result was the Veyron: a quad-turbocharged, 8.0-litre W16 producing 987hp and capable of more than 400km/h. It was excessive, complicated and spectacularly expensive to develop. In other words, thoroughly Piëch.
The 1,479hp Chiron followed, while the Chiron Super Sport 300+ became the first production-based road car to exceed 300mph, reaching 490.48km/h.
These cars transformed Bugatti from a revered historical name into the automotive industry’s preferred unit of measurement for absurdly high speeds. This sale now ends Bugatti’s 28-year association with the Volkswagen Group that funded those remarkable feats.
How Porsche, Bugatti And Rimac Came Together
Porsche first invested in Rimac in 2018, recognising that Mate Rimac’s young Croatian company possessed valuable expertise in batteries, electric motors and high-performance control systems.
Rimac itself had grown from an electrically converted BMW E30 into the creator of the 1,914hp Nevera, an electric hypercar capable of dispatching 0–100km/h in 1.81 seconds.
In 2021, Bugatti-Rimac was established. Rimac Group held 55 percent of the joint venture, while Porsche owned the remaining 45 percent and maintained a separate stake in Rimac Group.
Many expected the partnership to immediately electrify Bugatti. Instead, it produced the Tourbillon: an 8.3-litre naturally aspirated V16 assisted by three electric motors, generating 1,775hp. Apparently, the future still has room for sixteen cylinders and the sort of engine note that makes financial prudence seem terribly overrated.
Why Is Porsche Selling?
The €1 billion proceeds arrive at a useful moment. Porsche has faced weaker Chinese demand, heavy investment in electric vehicles and the consequences of product decisions that have not unfolded as smoothly as intended.
The sale forms part of a broader strategic realignment focused on strengthening Porsche’s core sports-car business and improving cash flow. Its projected 2026 automotive net cash-flow margin has consequently risen from 3-5 percent to 5.5-7.5 percent.
Porsche gains financial breathing room, but it walks away from two technologically important companies just as performance cars enter an increasingly complicated hybrid and electric age.
Mate Rimac Takes The Wheel
Mate Rimac will become Bugatti’s president, replacing Christophe Piochon, who steps down after more than two decades with the marque. Former Rimac Technology COO Marko Brkljačić will become Bugatti Rimac’s chief operating officer.
Rimac had reportedly spent more than 18 months pursuing greater control, having found the existing approval structure too cumbersome for rapid long-term decisions.
That makes this more than a reshuffling of shares. Mate Rimac now has greater freedom to decide what follows the Tourbillon, and whether Bugatti’s next chapter continues mixing combustion with electric force or embraces something entirely different.
Porsche leaves with €1 billion. Mate Rimac gains room to move. Bugatti, once again, enters an era shaped by one ambitious engineer with little interest in doing things conventionally. Interesting!
