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Ideanomics Inc. (NASDAQ: IDEX) Completes Commercial EV Ecosystem Reach through M&A Deal with Van Manufacturer VIA

Posted on September 8, 2021 by MissionIR
  • Sustainability cultivator Ideanomics has reached an agreement with commercial EV vehicle manufacturer VIA Motors to acquire VIA in an all-stock transaction valued at $450 million
  • The VIA acquisition will solidify Ideanomics’ position as a made-in-America brand focused on building an end-to-end commercial EV ecosystem 
  • Ideanomics has completed other M&A activity in recent months designed to establish sustainable solutions that reduce the harmful effects of pollutants on the earth’s climate, particularly involving wireless battery-charging technology for commercial fleets
  • The acquisition will help VIA to focus on completing the manufacturing process, with vehicles expected to roll out by 2023

New York-based Ideanomics (NASDAQ: IDEX) has been making a name for itself as a commercial electric vehicle (“EV”) industry innovator and on Aug. 30 the company announced an agreement it expects to be “transformative” in Ideanomics’ pursuit of providing end-to-end services for the commercial EV market. 

Ideanomics’ planned 100 percent acquisition of Utah’s VIA Motors International, Inc. in an all-stock transaction is expected to grant Ideanomics a vehicle manufacturing element to complement its charging technologies for “an immediate leadership position in a rapidly growing market” and deliver another revenue path to growth and profitability, Ideanomics CEO Alf Poor said in a morning conference call before market opening Aug. 30. 

“With Via we’re going to make the vehicles. Through our forced induction charging system with WAVE we’re going to be able to charge [them], through our relationship with [Germany’s Prettl Electronics Automotive] we’re going to be able to have outside battery storage to charge any type of fleets outside of a normal grid, and many other aspects, [to create a] complete ecosystem for Ideanomics,” Board Executive Chairman Shane McMahon said during the conference call (https://ibn.fm/3jcXs). 

Via will make electric commercial vehicles including Class 2 through Class 5 cargo vans, trucks, and buses. The company’s CEO is Bob Purcell, who led the General Motors (“GM”) electric vehicle business in the 1990s and is known as “the father of the legendary GM EV1,” which was the first mass-produced EV. 

“We were the car that started it all. … I was very proud of my group,” Purcell said in a Barron’s interview about the deal (https://ibn.fm/7lT7v). “We invented that technology … things like torque vector control for motors, battery management systems…none of that existed before the EV1.”

The agreement cements Ideanomics as a made-in-America brand and values VIA at $450 million, according to the news release announcing the agreement (https://ibn.fm/lS950). Poor told investors during the conference call that revenue forecasts for the acquisition will be announced in the near future as part of the proxy for shareholders. 

Under the terms of the agreement, VIA shareholders will receive about 162 million shares of Ideanomics common stock after the application of certain purchase price adjustments, leaving VIA shareholders with ownership of about 25 percent of the combined company. 

Ideanomics is separately advancing $50 million of financing to VIA in the form of a secured convertible note, according to the news release. 

Production is planned for 2023, according to Barron’s. 

“What they needed was a partner that could help them, allow them to focus on execution. Because execution is going to be the difference between who gets market share and who doesn’t,” Poor said. 

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Ideanomics.com.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to IDEX are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/IDEX 

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