KTM crisis latest: Pierer replaced as CEO

Stefan Pierer, the CEO of KTM and its eponymous parent company Pierer Mobility, is being replaced.

The Austrian is set to hand over control of his company to board member Gottfried Neumeister in the first big reshuffling as part of KTM's battle to stave off bankruptcy.

An investment banker who took over control of the then-struggling Austrian firm in the early 90s and subsequently turned it around into one of Europe’s largest motorcycle manufacturers, it has also been under Pierer’s control that the company has ended up €2.9 billion in debt, and his removal from the CEO role has been seen as imminent for some time now.

“For me,” he said in a statement released by the company, “KTM was always more than just a company – it was and is a passion, a mission and a family. The decision to hand over the helm was not an easy one.

"I am deeply convinced that Gottfried Neumeister, with his strategic foresight and commitment, is the right choice to lead KTM into the future.”

Pierer will remain as co-CEO for the time being to Neumeister (pictured below to the left of Pierer), a former airline industry executive who launched budget airline Niki Air in 2003 with three-time Formula 1 world champion Niki Lauda.

The group also confirmed that it has so far made 1800 employees redundant amid a 29% decrease in revenue from 2023, and has cut production by 26% as well as reducing its inventory of already-built bikes by 40,000.

However, there’s also some good news, with offers from a number of investment groups headed by American financial giant Citigroup to take over some 30% of the company’s shares currently held by Pierer.

One party believed to be keen to expand its holding in KTM is Indian manufacturer Bajaj, whose strategic relationship with the Austrian firm means it already holds the remaining 49.9% of shares not owned by Pierer Mobility.

The news comes ahead of yet another key deadline for KTM’s ongoing survival, with administrators holding a meeting on Friday to outline the next steps needed to be taken to save the company.

That may well spell important news for the future of KTM's MotoGP team, with it having been suggested earlier that a withdrawal from grand prix racing is being discussed as a measure - although as it stands no such decision has been officially made and KTM hasn't confirmed it as being on the table.