Fisker starts new round of layoffs to ‘preserve cash’

EV startup Fisker Inc. is laying off more employees to “preserve cash,” one week after warning investors it would have to make cuts to stave off impending bankruptcy, according to an internal email viewed by TechCrunch.

Founder and CEO Henrik Fisker told employees Monday morning in the email that the company is “continuing to evaluate all viable options for our business, including a potential transaction, and we are committed to identifying potential buyers and pathways to infuse capital into the business.”

“That said, we must preserve cash to help keep these options available to us,” he wrote. He previously told staff in a meeting last week that the company was still meeting with car companies under NDA, which was first reported by Business Insider.

“[I]t is with great personal pain and sadness that I deliver the difficult news that today we are making further reductions to our workforce,” Fisker wrote in the email.

It’s unclear how many employees Fisker Inc. is cutting. A spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Fisker employed 1,135 people as of April 19, according to a regulatory filing. It previously announced cuts of 15% in February.

The company announced last week that it hired a chief restructuring officer who is now in charge of approving Fisker Inc.’s budget, as well as the decision-making process for any sale of the business. It reported having just $54 million in cash and equivalents as of April 16.