Volvo shares rose by 22% on their Stockholm market debut last Friday, with the Swedish brand going public due to increased investor demand for EV manufacturers. Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelsson believed the listing was a key part of Volvo’s electric transition, stating the following:
“There’s a much bigger interest in the market to invest in electric car makers than in the conventional ones. So we better do what we said we would.”
Volvo, who are owned by Chinese brand Geely, valued themselves at $18 billion ahead of their IPO. However, strong investor demand for the firm has seen their value now rise to $22 billion. The market seemingly reacted strongly to Volvo’s dedication to go electric – with the marque aiming to only produce EVs by 2030.
Another key reason for Volvo’s surge in value is their electric sub-brand, Polestar. Volvo technically owns 49% of Polestar, who themselves aim to go public via a $20 billion SPAC deal in the coming months.
Volvo currently sells two all-electric vehicles, the XC40 Recharge and the C40 Recharge – both share a platform and many components. The Swedish firm aims to replace all of its current lineup with EVs, starting with the full-sized XC90 SUV. Interestingly, the XC90’s replacement will have a different name and should share a dedicated EV platform with the upcoming Polestar 3. Expect both to go on sale in 2023.
