Accountant in the driving seat at Aston Martin
David Richards set to become chairman of luxury car manufacturer, after his consortium beat off stiff competition to gain control of the company for a reported £450m
David
Richards is expected to become the new chairman of Aston Martin after
winning a fiercely contested bidding war for the luxury marque.
After studying accountancy, Richards became a professional rally co-driver,
competing for the factory Leyland, Opel and Ford teams.
Richards, who now owns of motor racing company Prodrive, teamed up with
two Kuwait-based backers
Investment
Dar and Adeem Investment Co to put an offer on the table for the
Warwickshire-based carmaker.
Previous owners
Ford
are expected to receive about £450m from the deal, and press reports
speculated that the US car giant will keep hold of a 15% stake in the private
company.
Richards’ consortium will be holding a news conference at 1pm
today to release full details of the transaction.