If you’ve been following the ongoing KTM drama closely, then chances are good that you already know that Bajaj Auto, through its wholly owned subsidiary Bajaj Auto International Holdings BV (based in the Netherlands), already has a 49.9% stake in Pierer Bajaj AG (which goes by the acronym PBAG, and I swear I’m not making that up).
The controlling ownership of PBAG, however, has historically been owned by Pierer Industrie AG, which is wholly owned by Stefan Pierer. Through the complicated nature of corporate holding structures, thus far, PBAG has held an approximately 75% stake in Pierer Mobility AG (PMAG), which is the parent company of KTM AG. Picture it like a corporate version of Russian nesting dolls, with a distinctly orange center in this case.
Up until this point, that means that Bajaj has previously held an estimated 37.5% stake in KTM. That is, until Bajaj just did what it did earlier this week, and took out significant loans so it could pull KTM back from the brink of no return.
Pending necessary regulatory approvals, Bajaj has announced that it “plans to acquire a sole controlling stake in PBAG,” and therefore also PMAG and its subsidiary, KTM AG. It’s unclear what this will specifically mean for Stefan Pierer; only that Bajaj will newly be in control of the whole thing, and Pierer Industrie AG will not.
But What About The KTM Boardroom Drama, and That Other Outstanding Debt?
I know there’s a lot of drama to keep track of, with what can seem like more plotlines bubbling just under the surface than a daily syndicated soap opera. But do you recall the power struggle between Stefan Pierer and Stephan Zöchling that broke out at the beginning of May 2025?
Zöchling—through Dabepo Holding GmbH—loaned the Pierer group approximately €80 million back in December 2024. Pierer (the company) didn’t pay it back in the agreed-upon timeframe, said Zöchling, which was a primary source of the early-May drama.
Enter Bajaj, which says that it’s now apparently stepped in and “taken over the commitment under the aforesaid Loan and Share Pledge Agreements from Dabepo Holding GmbH, to prevent the threatened foreclosure of this loan which could impede the planned restructuring and ramp up of the KTM business.”
In other words, Bajaj is repaying that debt, as part of its plan to “acquire a sole controlling stake in PBAG,” pending all necessary regulatory approvals.
There’s separate paperwork that Bajaj filed with Indian stock exchange regulators to inform them of this event, which RideApart has seen. It is among a flurry of such documents that have been filed since Bajaj filed its “Rumor Verification” with the BSE on May 20, 2025.
What Has Bajaj Invested So Far?
As you may recall, Bajaj already invested around 200 million Euros to keep KTM afloat throughout the rough first few months of 2025. And now, it’s added another 600 million Euro loan in May 2025, which will be distributed both in the form of a secured term loan and convertible bonds.
So, in total, it’s been around 800 million Euros invested by Bajaj to pull KTM out of its self-administration process, as well as satisfy the creditors’ outstanding 30% quota that was due on May 23, 2025—which is tomorrow, at the time of writing. Bajaj’s announcement is dated May 21, 2025; due to the vagaries of time zone differences, that’s a bit closer to May 23 in India than it is in Austria.
What Comes Next?
If things proceed according to Bajaj’s planned outline, motorcycle production, as well as supply of parts, apparel, and all other things we associate with KTM as a global motorcycle company will resume. Again, and I cannot stress this enough: This is all pending regulatory approval through several branches.
But assuming that all goes through without a hitch, Bajaj plans to make some significant moves, including revamping KTM’s governance structure and reconstituting its Board. It also plans to turn the company around, make it financially viable (I mean, of course), further “[implement] measures that widen the remit of the existing joint development program between the companies and [pursue] synergistic opportunities in both the front end and back end.”
In other words, as you might expect, Bajaj and KTM are going to get a whole lot closer and more deeply intertwined, if things completely go according to Bajaj’s plans.
How quickly this will all happen is another matter. It’s clear that even entities considered to normally be somewhat slow-moving can, in fact, move quickly when point-of-no-return deadlines are involved; see getting all this financing figured out just before the AKV creditor deadline of May 23, 2025 if you need proof.
But now that particular hurdle has been cleared, will all the changes Bajaj is hoping for be approved? And if so, how quickly will they be implemented? Watch this space.
