US-based electric motorcycle manufacturer Brammo has been acquired by electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Polaris Industries, an existing investor, for an undisclosed amount.
As part of the deal, Polaris will also invest an undisclosed amount in Brammo to recapitalise the company and enable it to focus on producing EV powertrains. Brammo had received approximately $68.5m in debt and equity, according to regulatory filings.
The company raised $9.5m in a March 2014 series D round backed by Aviva Investors, an asset management subsidiary of insurance company Aviva, and venture capital firm Terracap Ventures, subsequently securing $3m in debt financing on investment platform EarlyShares in September.
Polaris was the sole investor in a $13m series C round in 2012 which Brammo initially hoped would raise $45m. It had already led the 2011 second tranche of Brammo’s $29.5m series B round, which also featured investment firm Alpine Energy and private equity firm NorthPort Investments.
Best Buy Venture Capital, the corporate venturing arm of retail company Best Buy, and venture capital firm Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital had backed the series B round’s $12.5m first tranche in 2010, the two having previously provided the funds for a $15m series A round in 2008.
Polaris will use Brammo’s intellectual property assets, chiefly its battery pack and vehicle management system, as the basis to begin manufacturing electric motorcycles in the second half of this year.
– Photo courtesy of Brammo, Inc.