Saturday, 24 February 2018, Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany: Daimler has confirmed that billionaire Li Shufu, founder of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. has accumulated a stake worth about 7.3 billion euros in Daimler AG, marking the biggest investment in a global automobile manufacturer by a Chinese company.
Li Shufu, acquired the 9.7 percent holding through Geely Group, a company owned by the 54-year-old and managed by the carmaker he controls. Thereby Geely has become the single largest investor in the parent of Mercedes-Benz by building up a position of just under 10 percent through purchases in the stock market in recent weeks.
In December 2017, Li became the biggest shareholder in Sweden’s Volvo AB the world’s second-largest truck-maker. In 2010, he acquired Volvo Cars from Ford Motor Co., and last year won control of British sports-car maker Lotus Cars Ltd.
The Chinese firm, which controls Hong Kong-listed Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd., has ambitious expansion plans for both its home market and overseas as it takes on global car majors. Geely aims at starting selling a compact five-seat SUV, currently marketed under the Lynk & Co brand, outside China from mid-2019. It is likely to look first at Europe.
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