Close

'A Pump and Dump SPAC Scam': Quantumscape (QS), Backed by Bill Gates and Volkswagen, Falls 10% On a Short Report from Scorpion Capital

April 15, 2021 9:38 AM EDT
Get Alerts QS Hot Sheet
Price: $5.70 +0.18%

Rating Summary:
    1 Buy, 7 Hold, 5 Sell

Rating Trend: Up Up

Today's Overall Ratings:
    Up: 20 | Down: 14 | New: 22
Join SI Premium – FREE

A new short report from Scorpion Capital sent shares of Quantumscape (NYSE: QS) 10% lower in pre-open Thursday.

The company is no different than other recently exposed SPAC promotions and EV frauds, according to the activist short-selling Scorpion Capital, who interviewed 9 former R&D employees, 4 leading solid-state battery experts, and 2 employees in Volkswagen’s EV battery effort.

The activist alleges that many positive milestones that QS disclosed are false, including fast charging to 80% in less than 15 minutes. The report quotes a senior member of Volkswagen (VW) battery team, who says:

“The main issues our engineers and experts are raising are trust in the data, a lack of transparency. Behavior in certain situations like extreme temperatures and so on. This is a big question mark where they’re saying that we are having a lot of issues and a lot of risk. Those are [some of the] core questions that are circling around. They don’t trust that you can charge it in 15 minutes, for example.”

QS, which went public via a SPAC merger, claims that it has developed a breakthrough in the solid-state battery for electric vehicles.

“Ex-employees slammed each key claim as misleading, exaggerated, or fraudulent. Dendrites are one of the most stubborn obstacles to solid-state batteries. QS claims to have a “magic material” that’s solved it. Six ex-employees suggested the claim is false, made up, or “definitely bullshit,” implying that QS still struggles with dendrites: “hype,” “science is not there yet,” the report adds.

Two weeks ago, QS stock rallied after Volkswagen approved a second $100 million investment. The stock received another boost after Morgan Stanley praised the company, which is rated as “Overweight” with a price target of $70.00 per share.



Serious News for Serious Traders! Try StreetInsider.com Premium Free!

You May Also Be Interested In





Related Categories

Analyst Comments, SPAC, Short Sales, Trader Talk

Related Entities

Bill Gates, Morgan Stanley, Definitive Agreement, Pre Market Movers, SPAC