Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Groupe PSA will be known as ‘Stellantis’ once their 50:50 merger completes, drawing on astrological references and the firms’ Latin heritages.

The carmakers said the new group-level ‘Stellantis’ branding would pay tribute to the founding companies thanks to Its Latin origins while evoking astrological references

The carmakers confirmed last autumn that they were in merger talks, creating the world’s fourth largest OEM, behind Volkswagen Group, Toyota and the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, with 8.7 million sales, combined revenues of nearly €170bn (£154bn) and recurring operating profit of over €11bn (£10bn).

The confirmation followed months of speculation over possible tie-ups. Fiat Chrysler had been exploring a merger with Renault but pulled out of talks, blaming French politics, while there had been rumours of a merger between PSA and Jaguar Land Rover, quickly quashed by JLR parent Tata Motors.

The two firms have been working on identifying a new name since their Combination Agreement was announced in December 2019 and the Stellantis branding draws on the Latin verb ‘stello’, which means ‘to brighten with stars’. The carmakers said the evocation of astronomy “captures the true spirit of optimism, energy and renewal driving this industry-changing merger”.

The new branding will only be used at a group level and all individual brands will retain their current brands and logos.

The merger between FCA and Groupe PSA – expected to complete in the first quarter of 2021 – will enable the carmakers to meet key challenges in connected, electrified, shared and autonomous mobility while benefiting from shared platforms, powertrains and technology.

Speaking late last year, FCA and Groupe PSA said: “There is compelling logic for a bold and decisive move that would create an industry leader with the scale, capabilities and resources to capture successfully the opportunities and manage effectively the challenges of the new era in mobility.”

Completion of the merger is subject to approval by both companies’ shareholders at their respective Extraordinary General Meetings and achieving regulatory requirements.

Last month saw the European Commission announce that it had opened an in-depth investigation to assess the proposed merger, citing concerns that it would negatively affect competition with respect to sub-3.5 tonne vans in 14 EU Member States and the UK; in many countries, either PSA or FCA is already the market leader in light commercial vehicles, and the European Commission said the merger would remove one of the main competitors. The Commission has set a deadline of 22 October 2020 to make a decision.