MV Agusta’s motorcycle production at its Varese factory in Italy has apparently hit the buffers, with the company facing potentially terminal financial problems following the collapse of a proposed investment deal with big-league Chinese motorcycle manufacturer CFMoto, which would have resulted in CFMoto taking a 49% stake in MV Agusta.
After its split with the insolvent KTM and Pierer Mobility business in late 2024, MV Agusta ownership returned to the Art of Mobility holding company, controlled by Russian oligarch Rashid Sardarov and his son Timur Sardarov, in 2025. Sales then declined sharply until new chief executive Luca Martin launched plans to expand the model range, target annual sales of 10,000 units, and eventually enter MotoGP.
However, by July 2026, MV Agusta had allegedly sold only 1238 motorcycles and the company turned to CFMoto for distress finance, with the two parties signing a memorandum of understanding in June covering a proposed 49% shareholding and multi-million-euro restructuring investment.
This deal later fell apart after Art of Mobility terminated the agreement, leading to legal proceedings. Attempts to secure alternative funding stalled, while a planned €35m capital injection earlier this year also failed to materialise. Production at Varese has apparently been dormant since April, with supply-chain problems and unpaid supplier invoices further disrupting operations. Dealers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland also reported shortages of new motorcycles and spares, while financial input from China is clearly no longer forthcoming.
News of MV Agusta pausing production comes as a major surprise, given the projected sales ambitions it flaunted last year. Hubert Trunkenpolz, who had been chairman of MV Agusta and played a key role following KTM’s short-lived acquisition, resigned from the board on 20 July. MV Agusta operations in Cologne have reportedly continued limited deliveries to selected German dealers. Around 150 motorcycles have supposedly been supplied this year, with a production restart potentially targeted for October. But this seems unlikely, given the blatant absence of meaningful financial input.
Obviously, the company’s financial difficulties have also raised concerns over the future of its 185 employees in Italy, with debts potentially running into tens of millions of euros. MV Agusta would now require significant fresh investment to restart production and stabilise the business, while chief executive Luca Martin has refused to comment on the latest developments. Presumably CFMoto may be waiting in the wings to pick up the pieces for what may be a very cheap deal.
Since all of this hit the mat, the aggrieved business has fought back with various statements. The first of these insisted: “In relation to the numerous reports and interpretations that have recently appeared across various media outlets and online channels regarding MV Agusta’s corporate situation, the company believes it is appropriate to provide some clarification.” However, some of it has been waffle and excuses, much of it dating back to the separation from KTM.
The most pertinent recent revelation was an admission that MV Agusta has entered the Composizione Negoziata della Crisi (CNC), an emergency framework provided for under Italian law to enable companies verging on bankruptcy to address situations of “temporary financial imbalance”, i.e. they are in dire trouble – through a structured process assisted by independent professionals (presumably a polite name for court-appointed receivers). This procedure allows the company to assess its situation, engage with its various stakeholders and identify the most effective actions to support the rebalancing and relaunch of the business. Access to the CNC requires concrete prospects for recovery as a last resort.
Despite the complexity of this “current phase”, the company found time for a spot of boasting about commercial results confirming the strength of the brand and customer interest across its key international markets. In the first half of 2026, MV claimed to have racked up 2166 global retail registrations, an increase of 3.4% compared with 2094 units during the same period in 2025, on a like-for-like basis. Italy, the brand’s largest market, recorded growth of 28.8%, increasing from 500 to 644 motorcycles. Positive results were also achieved in France, with growth of 42.3%, and in the United States with an increase of 24.2%. Much of this probably involved taking a large pinch of salt.
Against this backdrop, MV Agusta said it has noted “the proliferation of rumours, interpretations and reports unsupported by objective evidence, some of which appear to originate from or be fuelled by parties that, in various capacities, have participated in or expressed an interest in these discussions.
“These reports, in addition to not accurately representing the situation, risk creating unnecessary confusion around the company at a time when it is essential to operate with responsibility, confidentiality and rigour. MV Agusta therefore does not intend to comment on individual rumours, nor to contribute to a debate based on speculation or partial information. Any significant development regarding the company’s corporate structure will be communicated directly by the company through its official channels once concrete and definitive conditions are in place.”
No further mention of the legal conflict vis-a-vis CFMoto has emerged.