Lilium N.V., the electric aircraft manufacturer and pioneer in Regional Air Mobility (RAM), has appointed KPMG to lead an open, transparent and fair M&A process, with initial investor briefings set to begin soon. This follows a significant step in Lilium’s restructuring, as the local court in Weilheim has approved the insolvency filing of Lilium’s German subsidiaries, granting Lilium’s request for self-administration.
The preliminary insolvency proceedings, conducted under self-administration, are court-supervised restructuring processes that allow management to retain control of the company while guided by experienced restructuring professionals. In line with this, the court has appointed two seasoned lawyers, Prof. Dr Gerrit Hölzle and Dr Thorsten Bieg, as Chief Insolvency Officers (CIOs) for Lilium’s German subsidiaries. Known for their extensive track record in crisis management, including recent work with Senvion and The Social Chain AG, Hölzle and Bieg will now oversee Lilium’s German subsidiaries through this re-organisation phase.
To safeguard creditor interests throughout the proceedings, the court has also appointed Ivo-Meinert Willrodt, Managing Partner at PLUTA Rechtsanwalts GmbH, as the provisional custodian. Willrodt, a restructuring specialist with a legal background in insolvency law, has previously served as trustee for notable start-ups including solar car company Sono Motors and drone manufacturer EMT.
Lilium’s CEO, Klaus Roewe, expressed support for the new appointments, stating: “With the support of our appointed custodian and the restructuring experts, we at Lilium remain fully focused on re-emerging following restructuring, with fresh investment to support the all-electric Lilium Jet’s path to certification and entry into service.”
Operations at Lilium’s subsidiaries continue as planned, with over 1,000 employees engaged in advancing the programme’s next major milestone—the first manned flight. The company has reassured employees of continued payment and has briefed affected suppliers on procedural details and future expectations as it navigates through this restructuring phase.
Lilium has been notified by NASDAQ that trading of the company’s shares and warrants will be suspended at the opening of business on November 6. Following trading suspension, the company’s ordinary shares may commence trading over the counter, which may result in significantly lower trading volumes and could further depress the share price.
