Feds Cash Last Check for Chrysler

The U.S. Treasury said it received the $560 million that Fiat has promised to pay for the remaining shares the U.S. government held in the Chrysler Group, ending the dealings between the feds and Chrysler six years ahead of the original plan, officials say.

What did it cost U.S. taxpayers? About $1.3 billion. The federal government initially injected $12.5 billion into the company and was repaid $11.2 billion, according to the New York Times.

That remaining $1.3 billion is owed by Old Chrysler, the legalese name for the bad assets that were spun off when Chrysler went into bankruptcy. Experts say there’s not much hope of the feds seeing much of that money being returned.

With this transaction, Fiat says it owns 53.5 percent of Chrysler LLC, “which returns to foreign ownership four years after its partnership with Daimler ended,” the Times notes.

Now that Fiat has control, CEO Sergio Marchionne says he plans to merge the management teams at Fiat and Chrysler in order to reduce operating costs and streamline operations.

Chrysler has said that since June 2009 it has invested $3.2 billion in U.S. facilities. The company has hired 6,000 new employees since 2009.

Government Sells Stake In Chrysler (New York Times)