Electric motorcycle startup Cake filed for bankruptcy on February 1, CEO Stefan Ytterborn confirmed to TechCrunch.
The Swedish company was in the middle of a financing round, just before submitting the application, but it appears that the investor’s withdrawal is what pushed the company to the brink, according to Swedish media reports. Ytterbourne declined to comment on what will happen next. While it’s unclear whether Cake has filed for bankruptcy or insolvency protection, Ytterborn told media outlet Dagens Industri that he didn’t have anything else “on his mind but to find a solution one way or another.” His comments suggest the company has filed for protection.
Known for making highly-designed bikes, Cake raised a $14 million Series A in 2019. This was followed by a $60 million Series B round in 2021 led by Swedish pension fund AMF. The company said at the time that the capital was intended to finance manufacturing facilities in Europe, North America and Asia and expand its retail capabilities.
However, the cake has struggled recently. In November, it issued a recall for one of its scooters due to A Danger of possible breakage of the steering column. Just a few weeks later, it subsequently recalled its flagship Kalk e-bike A unit at the South Korean agency caught fire. Ytterborn confirmed last week Swedish Brickit outlet The company will not be able to pay employees’ salaries.
Cake’s difficulties are the latest in the wider world of e-mobility. Super infantry He got out of work and bird Filed for bankruptcy. Micromobility.com – formerly known as Helbiz – was It has been deleted From the Nasdaq stock exchange. Decide on class and dot To merge In order to find a better way forward.
Perhaps most relevant to Cake is the case of Vanmoof. The high-end e-bike manufacturer from the Netherlands filed for bankruptcy protection last year. But it managed to find a buyer in electric scooter company Lavoie, which has since rebooted the brand.