Embattled German firearms manufacturer Heckler & Koch is about to be sold according to reports coming out of Germany. But the nature of the sale is still confusing and that the BND or the German Federal Intelligence Service is interested in learning more about a conglomeration of companies based in Barbados, Malta, Luxembourg, New Zealand, and the United States of America if we understood the rough translation of the reports correctly.

According to Welt.de, Andreas Heeschen currently owns two-thirds of the company but the company has submitted a sales proposal has been submitted to the Federal Ministry of Economics and the applicant is already involved in the company and that they are not expecting any change in “strategic direction.”

The company is in the red and saddled with debts and only just recently, it was able to show a profit in the first half of 2019 after two years. The Heeschen may have already pledged a portion of his shares to an investor which according to a former H&K CEO, French investor Nicolas Walewski, is the guy who is actually running the company. Walewski is the founder of London-based fund management company Alken Asset Management. Focus.de also mentions another name, Barbados-based French lawyer Gerard Lussan who is linked to Alken Asset Management through a chain of offshore companies.

The involvement of the BND is through Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology so that they can study the background of the potential buyers as part of in the change of ownership of H&K. It is very important for the German government as according to the Foreign Trade Act, such proposed sale can be examined whether national security interests are violated, especially in instances that of foreigner joining a German defense contractor. If deemed necessary, the change of ownership could be prohibited.

The question is, will the German government allow the sale to foreign owners? Heckler & Koch is seen as the leading candidate to supply the Bundeswehr with a new rifle to replace the G36, which the company also manufactures. Whilst the company, whose products are top favourites in the airsoft market as it licensed its weapons designs for airsoft via Umarex, is a top supplier of firearms of militaries in different countries, including the USA, it is still mired in financial problems that it will have to find a solution to such a situation in order for it to continue doing business.