Sep 16, 2020 - Energy & Climate

Electric vehicle startup Nikola reportedly facing 2 federal inquiries

Ben Geman

Photo: Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The electric and fuel cell truck startup Nikola is increasingly under the microscope following a short-seller's allegations that it made false statements about its tech and planned products.

Driving the news: The Financial Times reported Tuesday that the Justice Department is "making inquiries" following last week's claims by Hindenburg Research.

The Wall Street Journal confirmed the report about inquiries from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
The news follows revelations of a SEC inquiry into the Hindenburg report that called Nikola an "intricate fraud." Nikola disputes the findings.

Catch up quick: The turmoil comes on the heels of the Sept. 8 announcement that GM is taking an 11% stake in Nikola, will engineer and manufacture its Badger pickup, and supply tech for that product and its planned semitrucks.

Why it matters: The controversy comes at a time of growing investor interest in EV startups and corporate partnerships with legacy automakers.

Go deeper: Hear what Nikola's troubles mean for GM on the latest "Axios Re:Cap" podcast.

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Electric vehicle startup Nikola reportedly facing 2 federal inquiries

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