Nio has rejected reports suggesting that Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC, has filed a lawsuit against the company, calling the claims “unfounded.” The Chinese electric vehicle maker clarified that the case is not a new development and has no connection to its current operations. Instead, it stems from a short-seller report issued by Grizzly Research in June 2022, which Nio said contained false allegations.
The company previously addressed the matter in August 2022, when it conducted an independent internal review through a special committee supported by international law and forensic accounting firms. The review found no evidence of wrongdoing, and all allegations were deemed invalid.
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Public information indicates that GIC’s complaint accuses Nio and its joint venture, Wuhan NIO Power Asset Co., of inflating revenue and profits, allegedly misleading investors and causing financial losses.
Market data shows that after Nio Power was established, Nio’s fourth-quarter 2020 revenue rose from RMB 2.85 billion ($400 million) to RMB 6.64 billion ($930 million). Between August 2020 and July 2022, GIC reportedly acquired 54.45 million Nio ADS shares, with estimated losses ranging between $500 million and $2 billion due to stock price fluctuations.
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Insiders at Nio described the case as an extension of the earlier short-seller report and expressed uncertainty about its recent resurgence in the media. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had previously inquired about Nio Power’s transactions but took no further action.
Major financial institutions, including Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, and Daiwa Capital, have previously reviewed Grizzly Research’s report and found the claims unsupported, citing misinterpretations of Nio’s battery asset management model. Deutsche Bank said concerns about the business model were “entirely unfounded,” while Citibank noted that Nio Power’s operations undergo regular audits and due diligence.
Source: Chinaevhome
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