Remember this Press Statement from a month ago?
SPYKER ISSUES SUBCRIPTION NOTICE UNDER GEM FACLITY
Zeewolde, The Netherlands, 16 May 2011 – Spyker Cars N.V. (Spyker) announces today that it issued a subscription notice for 1 million shares under the current EUR 150 million equity facility between Spyker and GEM Global Yield Fund Limited. The exact number of shares to be issued and the price thereof will depend on a 15 day pricing period, which commences today.
You read that right, Saab has a credit card essentially for up to EUR 150 million when times get really tough. They initiated the agreement as backup financing when they purchased the company from GM, and after this latest share issue if my math is correct they still have most of it left. It’s expensive debt, it involves issuing shares with a 15 day pricing period, but it’s cash nonetheless to at least stop the bleeding. I wish Saab had tapped into this or something similar sooner to prevent today’s situation, but it seems that only a few legal documents are the culprit holding up the property sale deal, and they misjudged the timing on it’s finalization. From all indications, it appears to be a big mistake at legal on this one.
According to TTela, Victor Muller is in the US right now looking for immediate liquidity injections. GEM is based out of New York. Something tells me it might not even be the GEM funds that Victor ends up finding the best deal with this time around, but for all of you out there who suggest Saab is out of lifelines, I’d ask you to remember this major one.