Canu announced on Friday night that it would file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and “immediately cease operations” because it was unable to secure sufficient funds to continue operations. The following text was posted on the EV startup’s wall leading up to the announcement: The company has lost several executives in recent months, announced furloughs and reported to the SEC in November that it had just $700,000 in the bank, according to TechCrunch.
In a press release announcing the application, Canu said it was unable to raise funds from “foreign capital sources” that it had been discussing with the Department of Energy’s Office of Financing and Planning and executives. “Given the fact that these efforts have failed, the board has made the difficult decision to file for bankruptcy.” According to TechCrunch, Canoo owes more than $164 million to hundreds of creditors and has assets of about $126 million. Under the filing in Delaware, Canoo’s assets will be liquidated and the proceeds distributed to creditors. CEO Tony Aquila said in a statement: “We are truly disappointed that the situation turned out the way it did.”
Canoo built several electric vans for NASA and a prototype for the U.S. Army, and had large vehicle contracts with the USPS, Walmart, and others, but it seems like only a few of the vans ever materialized.
