Lavoie, the electric scooter division of Formula One engineering and technology company McLaren Applied, reportedly is in advanced talks to acquire bankrupt Dutch e-bike manufacturer VanMoof.
According to sources, negotiations are “quite an advanced stage” and that Lavoie will assume “as much as possible” of VanMoof’s management.
VanMoof are very well aligned with Lavoie’s strategy to grow as a premium global brand of e-mobility devices, claimed one of the souces.
The sources stated that they were unable to offer any further information regarding the terms or timeline of a deal.
On July 18, VanMoof was declared insolvent. Administrators are reportedly deciding whether to sell assets and restructure the company in order to rescue it.
Before going out of business, VanMoof sold over 200,000 electric bikes for more than 2,000 euros ($2,176) each, in part because of expensive maintenance expenses. Norwest Venture Partners, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm, venture capital firm Felix Capital, and other investors helped the company raise more than $180 million.
Earlier this month, trustees rejected a non-binding offer made by Nasdaq-listed Micromobility.com (MCOM.O) to buy VanMoof for an unknown sum.
Another source with knowledge of the situation claims that McLaren Applied is one of VanMoof’s two remaining suitors.
Private equity company Greybull Capital acquired McLaren Applied in 2021, and McLaren Applied just debuted the high-end Lavoie e-scooter brand. The scooters start at 1,890 pounds ($2,409) and fold and unfold with the push of a button.