NEW YORK, December 31, 2025, 10:37 ET — Regular session
- Polestar shares rose about 4% in morning trading after a new ownership filing.
- BBVA disclosed an 8.4% stake and said the position is not intended to influence control.
- A separate filing detailed a Geely-linked $600 million term loan facility and confirmed the recent PIPE closing.
Polestar Automotive Holding UK PLC shares rose 4.4% to $20.38 in morning trading on Wednesday after a regulatory filing showed Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) held an 8.4% stake. The bank reported beneficial ownership of 7,755,946 Class A American Depositary Shares (ADSs) as of Dec. 23 and disclosed a put option arrangement tied to Geely affiliates.
The disclosures matter because Polestar’s funding and potential dilution remain central to the equity story, and fresh ownership data can signal how recent capital has been placed. For traders, the terms around new money — including exit protections — can shape how the stock trades around financing levels.
Polestar said on Dec. 19 it had lined up a $300 million equity investment split between BBVA and Natixis, alongside a roughly $300 million debt-to-equity conversion with a Geely Sweden Holdings AB affiliate, subject to regulatory approvals. Chief executive Michael Lohscheller said the transactions “significantly enhance our liquidity position and help strengthen our balance sheet.” SEC
A Schedule 13G is a short-form disclosure used when an investor crosses the 5% ownership threshold, typically when the holder says it is passive. A put option is a contract that gives the holder the right to sell shares at a set time and price under defined conditions, acting as an exit route if the holder wants out.
In a separate Schedule 13D amendment dated Dec. 30, entities linked to Geely and Volvo detailed a $600 million term loan facility with Geely Sweden Automotive Investment AB, including a feature that allows the lender — subject to regulatory approvals — to convert some or all of the loan and accrued interest into shares. The filing also said the previously disclosed PIPE transaction closed on Dec. 23 and noted additional put option arrangements entered on Dec. 26.
A term loan facility is a borrowing line with set maturity and covenants; conversion features can lower repayment risk for the lender but may add shares and dilute existing holders if exercised.
Polestar has also recently adjusted its U.S.-listed share structure. A Geely-related filing said the company effected an ADS ratio change on Dec. 9, moving from one ADS representing one ordinary share to one ADS representing 30 ordinary shares — similar in effect to a reverse stock split aimed at lifting the per-share trading price.
More broadly, investors were digesting U.S. labor-market data on the final trading day of the year. Weekly jobless claims fell unexpectedly to 199,000 for the week ended Dec. 27, Reuters reported, a reading that fed into rate expectations and risk appetite.
U.S. stocks opened muted in thin year-end trading, with the main indexes near record levels after a volatile 2025, according to Reuters.
For Polestar, the next scheduled checkpoint is its update on retail sales volumes for the fourth quarter of 2025, which the company has said it expects to report on Jan. 9, 2026.
