The sale of the Saab brand to Spyker Cars is finally moving forward after a previous attempt had failed.  At the end of 2009, a deal between the two automakers was almost finalized but negotiations were abandoned when the US federal government expressed concerns over Spyker’s finances. Saab owners and employees had serious doubts about the future of the company, as it became nearly certain Saab facilities would soon be shuttered. According to reports, a significant shareholder, the Convers Group, was under serious scrutiny by the Swedish Security Service, the SAPO, for strong suspicions of Russian Mob ties. The SAPO is said to have then shared their intelligence on the Moscow Management Company, owned by relatives of Russian billionaire Alexander Antonov, with the FBI.

What changed to make Saab’s sale once again viable, was the transfer of 4.6 million shares to the chief executive at Spyker, Victor Muller; though a Spyker spokesperson denied any accuracy to the reports and GM didn’t specify what changes to Spyker’s corporate structure made them reconsider the sale. With financing from Muller’s firm, Tenaci Capital, as well as from GM and GEM Global Yield Fund, Spyker has come pretty close to securing the $1 billion Spyker said it requires to start Saab down the road to becoming a profitable brand once again. Spyker still is searching for about $24 million dollars in cash to be paid to GM upon the deals completion. More importantly, Spyker is waiting for the approval of a loan of 400 Euros from the European Investment Bank. The EIB is expected to make a decision on the Swedish government guaranteed loan within the next couple of weeks. If all goes well there should be few obstacle or speed bumps to slow down Saab’s acquisition, which should be official by the end of the month. The result should be the formation of a new company, Saab Spyker.