SHENYANG, China — In one of the more interesting automotive partnerships of the year, one of China's midsize automakers has sold a minority stake to a U.S. investor group led by Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander and Texas-based megadealer Red McCombs.
Alexander is perhaps best known in the United States as the man who brought Chinese basketball star Yao Ming to the NBA.
Alexander and McCombs are partners in a consortium that has agreed to invest $100 million in Brilliance China, a state-owned automaker based in northern China that is partnered with BMW and whose stock trades on the Hong Kong exchange.
In addition to a minority stake in the company, Brilliance is giving the Alexander/McCombs partnership the rights to distribute some vehicles outside China, as well as side deals involving used cars, finance, leasing, insurance and training.
Brilliance plans to use the proceeds to expand production of the BMW 3 Series and 5 Series, as well as its own sedans.
What this means to you: Alexander is paying Yao $15 million a year to play basketball, so presumably he can afford to invest in other Chinese ventures, like cars. In Yao, he also has a celebrity endorser with global name recognition. — Paul Lienert, Correspondent
Alexander is perhaps best known in the United States as the man who brought Chinese basketball star Yao Ming to the NBA.
Alexander and McCombs are partners in a consortium that has agreed to invest $100 million in Brilliance China, a state-owned automaker based in northern China that is partnered with BMW and whose stock trades on the Hong Kong exchange.
In addition to a minority stake in the company, Brilliance is giving the Alexander/McCombs partnership the rights to distribute some vehicles outside China, as well as side deals involving used cars, finance, leasing, insurance and training.
Brilliance plans to use the proceeds to expand production of the BMW 3 Series and 5 Series, as well as its own sedans.
What this means to you: Alexander is paying Yao $15 million a year to play basketball, so presumably he can afford to invest in other Chinese ventures, like cars. In Yao, he also has a celebrity endorser with global name recognition. — Paul Lienert, Correspondent
Add A Comment »