Nikola's founder Trevor Milton quits amid graft claims; shares dip

Nikola’s founder Trevor Milton (pictured) has left the company in the wake of regulatory probes and a short seller’s allegations that the electric-truck startup misled investors, sending shares plunging.
 
Milton stepped down as executive chairman effective immediately and was replaced by Stephen Girsky, the former General Motors Co. vice chairman who oversaw Nikola’s stock listing and helped broker a partnership with GM. Nikola’s shares — already reeling from claims leveled by short seller Hindenburg Research that US regulators are investigating — fell as much as 27.65 per cent as of 9:45 pm (IST).
 
“Nikola is truly in my blood and always will be, and the focus should be on the company and its world-changing mission, not me,” Milton said in a statement. “So I made the difficult decision to approach the board and step aside.”

 

The resignation marks a remarkable fall from grace for Milton, a 39-year-old college dropout whose fortune soared when he took Nikola public through a reverse merger in June. He agreed to relinquish stock units that were worth about $166 million as of Friday’s close and also gave up his board seat at Nikola, which has yet to generate any meaningful revenue. The worsening stock rout also is a blow to GM, which took an 11 per cent equity stake in Nikola earlier this month.