NIO’s having a bad year that might get even worse

Photo by James Bareham / The Verge

One year after becoming a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange, Chinese EV startup NIO appears to be in dire straits. The company reported early Tuesday morning that it lost $479 million during the second quarter of 2019, and only generated $220 million in revenue, thanks to a major dip in sales of its flagship ES8 electric SUV.
What’s more, NIO had just $503 million in the bank at the end of June, which helps explain why the company borrowed $200 million from its chairman and CEO and Tencent (which is a major backer of the startup) earlier this month. And things may only get worse, as NIO says it will “pursue a leaner operation through additional restructuring and spinning off some non-core businesses by year end.”
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