Well, it finally happened. Nikola (aka the electric truck company that once rolled a prototype downhill and called it "driving") has officially filed for bankruptcy. And honestly, the fact that they made it this far is either a testament to sheer willpower or an indictment of investor gullibility. Either way, it’s over.

Nikola Corp. entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware today, listing assets between $500 million and $1 billion, but liabilities of up to $10 billion. Which means they're broker than your cousin Chad who quit his job to “day trade” in 2021 (don’t take it personal, we all had a family member who did this).

But let’s not pretend this was a shock. Nikola’s stock had already crashed 33% in premarket trading a couple of weeks ago when news leaked that bankruptcy was on the table. And if we’re being real, the company had been circling the toilet for years… burning through cash, swapping CEOs like they were disposable razors (3 CEO changes the last 4 years), and trying to shake the stink of a fraud scandal that would make even Jordan Belfort raise his glass.

Remember when Nikola was supposed to be the electric trucking company? Back in 2020, its market cap rose to $34 billion… despite having exactly zero trucks on the road. It was supposed to be Tesla’s biggest competition, except for one minor detail: Tesla actually makes vehicles.

A big part of that hype came courtesy of Nikola’s founder, Trevor Milton, a man who turned “fake it till you make it” into a business model. Milton got investors pumped with wild claims about Nikola’s hydrogen-powered trucks… claims that, as it turns out, had about as much substance as the Liver King’s apology video.

(Source: Financial Times)

The best (or worst) example in my opinion was that infamous promo video of Nikola’s truck “driving” down a road… which was later revealed to be rolling down a hill with gravity doing all the work. That little stunt, combined with a short-seller report from Hindenburg Research exposing the company’s other exaggerations, led to Milton’s downfall.

In 2023, he was convicted of fraud for misleading investors and sentenced to four years in prison. At his sentencing, he cried and insisted he meant well… because, in his mind, lying to investors is fine if you do it with good intentions.

After Milton’s departure, Nikola tried to keep the dream alive, but reality had other plans. The company couldn’t sell enough trucks to offset its burn rate from hell. Then, in 2023, a recall due to battery fires (yep, the trucks were literally catching on fire) forced them to pause sales.

By the time 2024 rolled around, Nikola was running out of cash, customers, and hope. The EV market itself wasn’t helping, either… between high costs, nobody wanting $60k EVs with a 200-mile-range, and a charging infrastructure that is way behind where it should be, even Tesla is struggling.

Nikola desperately looked for ways to stay in the game, including selling part (or all) of its business, but investors weren’t biting. Turns out, not many people want to invest in an EV company with a history of rolling trucks downhill and recalling the ones that did make it to market.

So here we are. One-time Wall Street sweetheart, now another name on the ever-growing list of failed SPAC-driven EV startups. Nikola joins the likes of Fisker and Canoo, proving once again that blindly throwing money at “the next Tesla” is a great way to lose it all.

Nikola’s story is a masterclass in what not to do when investing in startups. Never trust a founder who over-promises with no actual product. If a company has a history of deception, believe them the first time. And for the love of all things holy, if the best innovation they can show is a truck rolling downhill, run.

Nikola’s stock, which once made early investors filthy rich on hype alone, is now worth less than a used 2010 Nissan Altima. RIP Nikola. You won’t be missed.

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Stock.News has positions in Tesla.