EV SPACs: The Electric Vehicle SPAC Disaster
The electric vehicle sector was ground zero for the SPAC bubble. Companies with no revenue, no factory, and sometimes no working product raised billions through blank-check mergers — then collapsed. Here's every EV SPAC and what happened to it.
EV SPACs Tracked
34
Electric vehicle SPACs
Total Trust Size
$15.2B
Raised from investors
Average Return
-74.8%
Post-merger performance
Bankruptcies
14
9 SEC actions
Why EVs + SPACs Was a Toxic Combination
During 2020-2021, the convergence of EV hype (fueled by Tesla's rise) and easy SPAC money created a perfect storm. Companies that were years away from production could go public with fantastical revenue projections that would never survive traditional IPO due diligence.
The result: companies like Nikola (which faked a truck demo by rolling it downhill), Lordstown (which fabricated pre-orders), and Fisker (which couldn't fix software bugs) all raised billions from retail investors before collapsing. The peak market cap of these EV SPACs exceeded $522.5B — virtually all of it destroyed.
Every EV SPAC: The Complete List
| Company | Ticker | Sector | Year | Trust Size | Peak Price | Return | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proterra | PTRA | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $200M | $31.06 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Bird Global | BRDS | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $160M | $14.00 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Volta | VLTA | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $345M | $14.50 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Electric Last Mile Solutions | ELMS | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $155M | $15.00 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Cazoo Group | CZOO | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $805M | $12.50 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Arrival SA | ARVL | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $370M | $36.00 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Nikola | NKLA | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $237M | $93.99 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Fisker | FSR | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $552M | $31.96 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Hyliion | HYLN | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $206M | $58.66 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Lordstown Motors | RIDE | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $675M | $31.80 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Lion Electric | LEV | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $320M | $35.09 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Canoo | GOEV | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $300M | $24.90 | -100.0% | bankrupt |
| Lightning eMotors | ZEVY | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $56M | $242.60 | -100.0% | delisted |
| Faraday Future | FFIE | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $230M | $16.88 | -100.0% | zombie |
| Mullen Automotive | MULN | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $50M | $15.90 | -100.0% | zombie |
| ECD Automotive Design | ECDA | EV/Automotive | 2022 | $12M | $494.00 | -99.9% | zombie |
| Getaround | GETR | EV/Automotive | 2022 | $350M | $38.00 | -99.0% | bankrupt |
| Polestar | PSNY | EV/Automotive | 2022 | $800M | $13.00 | -98.0% | zombie |
| REE Automotive | REE | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $350M | $30.00 | -98.0% | zombie |
| Blink Charging | BLNK | EV/Automotive | 2018 | $50M | $64.50 | -97.7% | zombie |
| QuantumScape | QS | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $300M | $132.73 | -97.0% | zombie |
| VinFast | VFS | EV/Automotive | 2023 | $169M | $93.00 | -96.0% | zombie |
| Xos | XOS | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $407M | $15.68 | -95.0% | zombie |
| Microvast Holdings | MVST | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $300M | $23.00 | -91.0% | zombie |
| ChargePoint Holdings | CHPT | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $275M | $49.48 | -91.0% | zombie |
| Wallbox | WBX | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $230M | $27.00 | -85.0% | zombie |
| Lucid Motors | LCID | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $2.1B | $57.75 | -50.0% | zombie |
| Ascendant Mobility Acquisition Corp I | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $0 | $0.00 | 0.0% | delisted | |
| EVe Mobility Acquisition | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $66M | $0.00 | 0.0% | zombie | |
| Live Oak Mobility Acquisition | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $255M | $0.00 | 0.0% | delisted | |
| Motor City Acquisition | EV/Automotive | 2021 | $0 | $0.00 | 0.0% | delisted | |
| Presto Automation | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $20M | $0.00 | 0.0% | zombie | |
| ID Auto | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $19M | $0.00 | 0.0% | bankrupt | |
| Claritev | CTEV | EV/Automotive | 2020 | $4.9B | $517.20 | +54.5% | survivor |
The Most Notable EV SPAC Failures
Proterra was a pioneer in electric transit buses, going public via SPAC in 2021. Despite having actual products and customers including government agencies, the company filed Chapter 11 in August 2023 due to cash burn and supply chain issues.
Bird, the electric scooter-sharing company, went public via SPAC in 2021 at a $2.3 billion valuation. The company filed bankruptcy in December 2023 with just $3.3 million in cash, after burning through hundreds of millions.
Volta operated ad-supported free EV charging stations, going public via SPAC in 2021. The unique business model — charging funded by digital advertising — never generated enough revenue, and the company was acquired by Shell for pennies on the dollar.
ELMS set the record for fastest SPAC-to-bankruptcy, filing Chapter 7 just 12 months after its merger closed. The CEO and CTO resigned after an internal investigation revealed they purchased shares below trust value before the merger.
UK online used car platform modeled after Carvana. Burned through $2B+ trying to replicate the US model in Europe. Bankrupt by 2024.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which EV companies went public via SPAC?
Major EV SPACs include Nikola (NKLA), Fisker (FSR), Lordstown Motors (RIDE), Canoo (GOEV), Lion Electric (LEV), Proterra, Hyliion (HYLN), Lucid (LCID via CCIV), and many more. Most have lost 80-100% of their value since going public.
Why did EV SPACs fail?
Most EV SPACs were pre-revenue companies with unproven technology. They went public on wildly optimistic projections that never materialized. Manufacturing cars is incredibly capital-intensive, and most ran out of money before reaching meaningful production.