Toto Wolff sells 5% of Williams

When he decided to take the reins of all of Mercedes’ sports activities, Toto Wolff found himself in the position of being the director and significant shareholder (30% of the capital) of a team, Mercedes, while also being the second largest shareholder (15% of the capital) of another team, Williams.

The relationship between the two structures was simplified by the engine change carried out by Williams during the winter, moving from the Renault block to the one offered by Mercedes. But the position was still difficult to sustain, so the businessman initiated the process of selling at least part of his shares: « It was always planned to reduce my stake in Williams to a level of a mere financial investment. This was important for Daimler for reasons of conflict of interest and for compliance reasons. »

However, even though the team is listed on the Stock Exchange, Williams remains a family team. The new investor therefore had to meet the expectations of the latter: « It was relatively complicated to find someone who was good for the business, good for the family, and who had the mindset that I had when I joined Williams as a financial investor.

He found the rare bird with Brad Hollinger. He is a Formula 1 enthusiast, owning several vintage models. However, his investor journey is very different from that of car racing, as the founder of Vibra Healthcare, he heads 92 hospitals across 18 US states.

This one approaches Formula 1 as a commercial enterprise that still presents significant growth opportunities in the coming years, particularly in the United States: « I believe that F1 is on the right track to experience explosive growth. The dimension of social media is an opportunity that F1 can really seize and further accelerate. I think this can create an opening in the American market, and I would like to be part of this process. »

However, Frank Williams remains the majority owner of his team as he still holds 52% of it.