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[sagi58]

Sergio Marchionne: seems to me this man is going to be a key player and deserves his own thread.

 wrote:">Ferrari rules out leaving Italy to set up English HQ

Ferrari has ruled out leaving Italy as it bids to end a seven-year championship drought. Having faltered at the start of the new turbo V6 era, the Maranello marque has undergone a radical shake-up ahead of what new president Sergio Marchionne admits will be yet another difficult campaign in 2015.

In the late 80s, Ferrari made a bold bid for competitiveness by signing designer John Barnard and letting him work for the team from an English base. More recently, the iconic team has struggled to similarly woo F1's top designers like Adrian Newey, and so speculation of the return to having a UK base has re-emerged. It would also allow Ferrari to benefit from F1's so-called 'Motorsport Valley', where eight of the 11 teams that began the 2014 season are based.

But Marchionne has ruled it out. "Ferrari is Italy," he is quoted by Speed Week, "and this exclusivity will be untouched. A Ferrari must be built in Italy -- anything else would be blasphemy," Marchionne insisted.

The 62-year-old Italian-Canadian is famous for having revived not only Fiat but also Chrysler, and now he is also heading Ferrari in its period of turmoil. "I have already simplified my life because I have only three phones," he laughed. "But it's true -- at the moment I live predominantly on planes."

[sagi58]

There seems to be some misunderstanding of the philosophy behind putting Ferrari on the NYSE.
Point of interest:
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) owns 90% of Ferrari, of that "only" 10% is going to be traded,
with the rest being distributed amongst their shareholders. Enzo Ferrari owns the other 10%.

, Gerry Malloy wrote:">Ferrari to separate from Fiat Chrysler
October 29, 2014, 11:55 AM

FCA will sell 10% of Ferrari's shares and distribute the rest among existing shareholders

The Board of Directors of newly merged Fiat Chrysler Automobiles met for the first time today at its new headquarters in London and among the orders of business was the disposition of its crown jewel, Ferrari.

The exotic brand will be spun-off as its own company. The separation will be accomplished through a public offering of FCA’s interest in Ferrari equal to 10% of its outstanding shares, with the balance distributed among the existing FCA shareholders...

..."The separation of Ferrari will preserve the cherished Italian heritage and unique position of the Ferrari business and allow FCA shareholders to continue to benefit from the substantial value inherent in this business” said John Elkann, Chairman of FCA.

It will also help generate much-needed cash for FCA, which needs capital to realize its ambitious expansion plans for the 2015-2018 period. Those plans include the globalization of both the Alfa Romeo brands...

By the way:

, Andy Sharman wrote:">Fiat Chrysler to spin off sports car maker Ferrari

...Ferrari’s enterprise value was put at between €4bn and €6bn by analysts. FCA shares rose almost 15 per cent to $11.15 in morning trading in New York...

[sagi58]

Although the article is mainly about Alonso, it demonstrates just how long Marchionne has been involved and why:

Mark Hughes wrote:">Alonso leaves Ferrari

...Whatever, the waves created internally by Alonso’s remarks have frequently made life difficult for the management. His subtexts, the throwaway lines in public or to favoured journalists became all about how the team had let him down. He was the warrior pulling the team along in his wake – and they were being found wanting.

With a team being run one step removed by Luca di Montezemelo through a corporate lieutenant, that actually is how it was. Alonso was the centre of gravity of the team, its inspiration. But they were not devoted to him. His protective shell no longer allowed them in; he seemed to regard them with suspicion rather than respect...

...the team was on the slide, no question. The days when Ross Brawn and Jean Todt held any corporate interference at bay and built up a lean, efficient racing unit were long gone...

...And that’s just the way things were rolling – until the consistent under-achievement caused Fiat’s senior figures to turn their corporate heads Maranello way with question marks on their faces. From the moment Fiat’s Sergio Marchionne and John Elkann installed Mattiacci earlier this year di Montezemelo’s days were numbered...

... [Ferrari is] a team that has every chance of fielding a much improved car next year. It will be the first overseen by James Allison – who has been given carte blanche by Mattiacci to do what’s needed.

A big chunk of the necessary improvement in the power unit is easily reachable in that this one was deliberately – but misguidedly – conceived around an extreme solution to minimising heat rejection, at the expense of power...