Magna is one of the world’s largest automotive parts supplier and is the parent company of Austria’s Magna Steyr, a vehicle manufacturer that has built cars for BMW, Mercedes and Volkswagen among others. Until now, other parties including major private equity firms Cerberus and Blackstone were thought to be in the running as well as several other carmakers including Hyundai.
A representative from DaimlerChrysler has stated that "all options are open" and latest reports are suggesting that the German giant will still hold a major stake in Chrysler, most likely surrounding any parts sharing deal. Automobilwoche is also citing the reason behind the Magna purchase as being company founder Frank Stronach's desire to show "he takes care of his clients in need" and that Chrysler would likely be spun-off again once its restructuring plans are complete.