Aston Martin F1
2021 retail bond proposal
AMR GP Limited operated the Aston Martin Formula One team from Silverstone in Northamptonshire when the bond was proposed in 2021. The team used the Aston Martin name under a sponsorship and branding agreement with the carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda.
What we found
In October 2021, AMR GP Finance plc proposed a five-year bond paying 7% a year in cash, in two instalments, with a £1,000 minimum subscription. The money was to help build the team’s new factory and wind tunnel at Silverstone. The bonds were to trade on the London Stock Exchange. The offer documents promised no race tickets, hospitality or other consumer reward.
Which Aston Martin?
AMR GP Finance belonged to the Formula One team. It was a separate company from the carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda; owning the carmaker’s shares gave no rights under the bond proposal.
A bond for fans
Chairman Lawrence Stroll’s launch statement singled out Formula One fans as well as investors. The invitation let fans lend money for the new campus; it did not promise access to races or the team.
History
-
Cancellation reported
Reuters reported on 1 November 2021, the day the offer was due to close, that the team would not go ahead. The company said more attractive financing was available for a larger amount than it had planned. Stroll had told Reuters in October that the planned three-building campus, including the wind tunnel, would cost about £220 million.