Saab-Spyker Deal Sabotaged By Mobbed-Up Russian Finance?

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

GM’s CEO and Chairman Ed Whitacre confirmed today that Dutch boutique sportscar firm Spyker is the only bidder for what’s left of Saab after the BAIC deal. Saab insiders insist that the firm can continue without the old tooling and technology sold to BAIC, and they still have their hopes pinned on the new 9-5 model. But, as the WSJ reports, Spyker earned a mere €7.9m in 2008 revenue, and has already endured an €8.7m net loss in the first half of this year. Spyker’s in no position to be saving struggling Swedish automakers. But behind Spyker is Convers Group, a Russian banking group with deep pockets… and a uniquely Russian reputation.

The NY Times reports that Spyker is

controlled by Alexander Antonov, a Russian tycoon who was shot seven times and reportedly lost a finger in a failed assassination attempt in Moscow in March. His son Vladimir Antonov, a 34-year-old banker who is a top executive at Convers, is chairman of Spyker.

At the time, news reports suggested the attack was related to Antonov’s “professional activities.” Fueling the mystery behind the hit, unnamed suspects who were arrested not long after the attack were then also tied to the assassination of Ruslan Yamadayev, an enemy of the Russian-backed president of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. Though, as analyst Andrei Soldatov tells The St Petersburg Times, any links between Antonov’s assassination and Yamayedev’s could be fabricated to “make the impression that there is a different group, one that is not associated with the Kadyrov clan, that sought to kill the Yamadayevs.” Chechen blood feuds can be so damned complicated.

One thing is clear: Antonov didn’t get riddled with 18 bullets as a sign of admiration for his deep commitment to intellectual property law. And GM has indicated that IP concerns were a major reason for the death of the Opel deal to Magna, which had backing from another Russian bank. Saab sold its old IP and tooling to BAIC in order to keep the company as intact as possible in hopes of a last ditch deal with Spyker. To make even a minuscule amount of sense, that deal would have to include the new 9-5, which represents the only real value in Saab (nobody needs a Swedish factory). Saab says it can last for 3 months on the BAIC cash, but Ed Whitacre has made it clear that if a deal isn’t done by the end of this month, Saab will be liquidated. Given the wild reputation of the financier behind the purchase, that scenario looks more likely than ever.

Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Autonut Autonut on Dec 15, 2009

    Antonov is an amazing man! 18 bullets and only lost a finger. Anyway to tie Fritz Henderson to assassination attempt?

  • No_slushbox No_slushbox on Dec 16, 2009

    Oh my god, if Saab gets liquidated where will people get mediocre FWD cars? Those are so rare. The 9-5 is completely pointless since the Buick version of the Epsilon-II platform will also come with a manual transmission. If this Russian buys Saab he'll lose more than his finger.

    • PartsUnknown PartsUnknown on Dec 16, 2009

      Hilarious! You just can't help yourself, can you? Typical Camry driver...

  • AZFelix Hilux technical, preferably with a swivel mount.
  • ToolGuy This is the kind of thing you get when you give people faster internet.
  • ToolGuy North America is already the greatest country on the planet, and I have learned to be careful about what I wish for in terms of making changes. I mean, if Greenland wants to buy JDM vehicles, isn't that for the Danes to decide?
  • ToolGuy Once again my home did not catch on fire and my fire extinguisher(s) stayed in the closet, unused. I guess I threw my money away on fire extinguishers.(And by fire extinguishers I mean nuclear missiles.)
  • Carson D The UAW has succeeded in organizing a US VW plant before. There's a reason they don't teach history in the schools any longer. People wouldn't make the same mistakes.
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