Electric trucking startup Nikola is aiming to sell its entire business by as early as April, as indicated by the company’s legal representatives during the initial hearing of its bankruptcy proceedings in Delaware on Thursday.
The attorneys stated that Nikola has already attracted interest from at least three unidentified potential buyers and intends to seek additional bids, with a likely submission deadline set for late March.
Should Nikola be unable to secure a buyer for the complete business, the company plans to liquidate its assets in parts to address over $1 billion in liabilities. Nikola asserts that its assets are valued between $500 million and $1 billion.
This hearing occurred just one day after Nikola filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and declared its intention to cease operations as an independent entity, marking the conclusion of a company that has faced significant turmoil following the conviction of its founder, Trevor Milton, on multiple counts of securities fraud.
Nikola had been pursuing a sale for several months, as evidenced by early bankruptcy filings and statements from its legal team.
In a sworn statement, CEO Stephen Girsky noted that Nikola collaborated with Goldman Sachs and reached out to 22 potential buyers within the truck manufacturing and transportation logistics sectors. According to Girsky, two international automotive manufacturers showed interest in a deal, but one subsequently withdrew. Nikola also engaged in discussions involving various term sheets with the remaining party until that entity also opted out in late 2024.
Following these setbacks, Nikola enlisted the law firm Houlihan Lokey to approach 24 financial investors to assess interest in both standalone investments and partnerships with strategic investors. However, the feedback indicated that substantial financial resources would be necessary to revitalize Nikola’s emerging business, as per Girsky’s account.
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Worth, which introduced its product a year ago, has leveraged artificial intelligence and a strategic partnership with Equifax to develop a proprietary dataset encompassing over 242 million global small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). This was achieved by analyzing extensive data from various sources, including bank accounts, tax returns, QuickBooks, and Stripe. By consistently updating this dataset, Worth is able to furnish financial institutions, credit unions, payment processors, and fintech companies with real-time information, as noted by lead investor Neil Kapur, a partner at TTV Capital, which spearheaded the startup’s equity funding.
“We possess comprehensive 360-degree financial data on small businesses, which has previously been unavailable,” stated Rehmetullah.
Although the founders have not disclosed specific revenue figures, they informed TechCrunch that the startup’s annual recurring revenue (ARR) is in the “seven figures,” with growth rates surpassing triple digits, including the addition of 12 clients in the fourth quarter of 2024 alone.
Currently, Worth serves over 25 clients, such as Aurora Payments, REPAY Holdings, Fairwinds, and PatientFi, among others.
The company generates revenue by imposing a platform fee for access to pre-filling capabilities, instant verification services, a case management database, ongoing predictive monitoring, and AI-driven features. Additionally, it charges a fee for each entity verification performed.
Looking forward, Worth intends to launch a “Worth Score,” a business credit score, directly to SMBs in early 2026, aiming to assist them in gaining a clearer understanding of their financial health.
At present, Worth employs more than 50 full-time staff members.
TTV Capital led the equity funding round, which also saw participation from Ingeborg, Florida Funders, Deep Work Capital, and Florida Opportunity Fund. Furthermore, Worth secured $5 million in debt financing from Silicon Valley Bank.
The company plans to utilize its new capital primarily to expand its operations, particularly in sales and marketing.
Kapur from TTV asserts that Worth is enhancing operational efficiency for its clients through automation, resulting in immediate and quantifiable returns on investment. Additionally, his firm holds the view that the founding team of Worth possesses a unique set of qualifications to address the onboarding and underwriting challenges faced by financial institutions.
He conveyed to TechFy that TTV is investing in the founders as much as in the concept itself.
