ZEEKR’s X SUVs closely follow 001 sedans in trek overseas as expansion in Europe continues
Less than a month after sending its flagship 001 sedans on a ship overseas to Europe, ZEEKR is loading up its first batch of X SUVs to join them. When they arrive, ZEEKR will immediately begin selling the two passenger EVs models in two markets of Europe as part of a strategy that includes further global expansion.
Thanks in part to the backing of parent company Geely Holding, ZEEKR has made some impressive progress in the mere two years it’s been in operation in China. This past April, the EV automaker was celebrating its 100,000th vehicle off its assembly line in only 18 months of production – led by the manufacturing of its flagship model, the 001 sedan.
The 001 and 009 MPV were soon joined by plans for a third model called the ZEEKR X, which began production in China this past June. Weeks later, ZEEKR officially opened pre-orders in Europe for both the 001 and X EVs, beginning in Sweden and the Netherlands.
By late August, the first batch of 001s built specifically for Europe were loaded up in China before making their trip by sea to their new markets. Now, ZEEKR is loading up a second shipment bound for Europe – this time filled with X SUVs.
ZEEKR will soon be selling both 001 and X EVs in Europe
Per a post on ZEEKR’s Weibo page, the first batch of X SUVs has been loaded up in Hong Kong and will make its way to Europe ahead of customer deliveries in Sweden and the Netherlands in Q4 2023.
The post also includes a cool video of the European versions of the ZEEKR X being built and loaded up in China. When ZEEKR outlined its strategy for Europe this past spring, it shared it would use a direct-to-consumer model in selling the 001 and X EVs, with plans to expand to six European markets by 2024.
The Chinese automaker has not yet shared what those four additional European countries will be yet, however. When ZEEKR announced its opening of pre-orders in Sweden and the Netherlands, it shared that the starting prices of the 001 sedan and X SUV will be 59,490 euros ($63,500) and 44,990 euros ($48,000), respectively.
Pricing of the X in Europe is particularly interesting as ZEEKR originally launched the SUV in China for under $30k as a competitor to the Tesla Model Y. Either way, ZEEKR is hoping to make a name for itself in Europe on the wings of these two models and big plans for expansion. This will be a company to watch.
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The Trump administration is shutting down EV chargers at all federal government buildings and is also expected to sell off the General Services Administration‘s (GSA) newly bought EVs.
GSA, which manages all federal government-owned buildings, also operates the federal buildings’ EV chargers. Federally owned EVs and federal employee-owned personal EVs are charged on those 8,000 charging ports.
The Verge reports it’s been told by a source that plans will be officially announced internally next week, and it’s seen an email that GSA has already sent to regional offices about the plans:
“As GSA has worked to align with the current administration, we have received direction that all GSA-owned charging stations are not mission-critical.”
The GSA is working on the timing of canceling current network contracts that keep the EV chargers operational. Once those contracts are canceled, the stations will be taken out of service and “turned off at the breaker,” the email reads. Other chargers will be turned off starting next week.
“Neither Government Owned Vehicles nor Privately Owned Vehicles will be able to charge at these charging stations once they’re out of service.”
Colorado Public Radio first reported yesterday that it had seen the email that was sent to the Denver Federal Center, which has 22 EV charging stations at 11 locations.
The Trump/Elon Musk administration has taken the GSA’s fleet electrification webpage offline entirely. (An archived version is available here.)
The Verge‘s source also said that the GSA will offload the EVs it bought during the Biden administration, although it’s unknown whether they’ll be sold or stored.
Read more: Trump just canceled the federal NEVI EV charger program
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Ben Zhou, chief executive officer of ByBit, during the Token2049 conference in Singapore, on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023.
Joseph Nair | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Bybit, a major cryptocurrency exchange, has been hacked to the tune of $1.5 billion in digital assets, in what’s estimated to be the largest crypto heist in history.
The attack compromised Bybit’s cold wallet, an offline storage system designed for security. The stolen funds, primarily in ether, were quickly transferred across multiple wallets and liquidated through various platforms.
“Please rest assured that all other cold wallets are secure,” Ben Zhou, CEO of Bybit, posted on X. “All withdrawals are NORMAL.”
Blockchain analysis firms, including Elliptic and Arkham Intelligence, traced the stolen crypto as it was moved to various accounts and swiftly offloaded. The hack far surpasses previous thefts in the sector, according to Elliptic. That includes the $611 million stolen from Poly Network in 2021 and the $570 million drained from Binance in 2022.
Analysts at Elliptic later linked the attack to North Korea’s Lazarus Group, a state-sponsored hacking collective notorious for siphoning billions of dollars from the cryptocurrency industry. The group is known for exploiting security vulnerabilities to finance North Korea’s regime, often using sophisticated laundering methods to obscure the flow of funds.
“We’ve labelled the thief’s addresses in our software, to help to prevent these funds from being cashed-out through any other exchanges,” said Tom Robinson, chief scientist at Elliptic, in an email.
The breach immediately triggered a rush of withdrawals from Bybit as users feared potential insolvency. Zhou said outflows had stabilized. To reassure customers, he announced that Bybit had secured a bridge loan from undisclosed partners to cover any unrecoverable losses and maintain operations.
The Lazarus Group’s history of targeting crypto platforms dates back to 2017, when the group infiltrated four South Korean exchanges and stole $200 million worth of bitcoin. As law enforcement agencies and crypto tracking firms work to trace the stolen assets, industry experts warn that large-scale thefts remain a fundamental risk.
“The more difficult we make it to benefit from crimes such as this, the less frequently they will take place,” Elliptic’s Robinson wrote in a post.
WATCH: Crypto stocks plunge
Environment
Ford Mustang Mach-E is heavily discounted, you can even lease it for less than a Toyota Camry
Ford is offering big savings opportunities right now on its electric vehicles. The Ford Mustang Mach-E can be leased for less than a Toyota Camry in some places despite costing over $10,000 more. Here’s how you can snag some savings.
Ford’s Mach-E is cheaper to lease than a Camry right now
With over 51,700 models sold in 2024, Ford’s Mustang Mach-E was the third best-selling EV in the US behind the Tesla Model Y and Model 3.
The electric Mach-E even outsold the gas-powered Mustang for the first time last year. To keep up with new models like the Honda Prologue and the 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5, Ford introduced big discounts at the start of the year.
Ford extended its “Power Promise” program in January, offering all EV buyers a free Level 2 home charger. The company will even cover the cost of standard installation. If you already have a home charger, Ford will give you a $1,000 charging credit.
According to online car research firm CarsDirect, the savings don’t stop there. Through March 31, the 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E can be leased for as little as $229 for 24 months in Southern California.
With $4,329 due at signing, the effective cost is just $409 per month. The deal is for the base 2024 Mach-E Select with an MSRP of $39,995 and includes a $7,750 lease cash bonus.
In comparison, the 2025 Toyota Camry Hybrid LE (MSRP $28,400) is listed at $299 for 39 months and $3,598 due upfront, for an effective rate of $391 per month.
Although that’s slightly less than the Mach-E, if you factor in Ford’s other incentives, it’s actually much cheaper. In addition to the $1,000 charging credit, Ford is offering current Tesla owners $1,000 in conquest bonus cash, which can be applied to the purchase or lease of a new vehicle.
The $2,000 in savings brings the effective monthly lease rate to just $326 per month. That’s even $10 cheaper than a 2025 Toyota Corolla LE with an MSRP of just $22,325, or over $17,500 less than the Mustang Mach-E.
Alternatively, Ford is offering the 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E for 0% APR for 72 months plus $2,500 in bonus cash.
Ford also introduced new incentives on the F-150 Lightning last week. The 2024 F-150 Lightning now features a nationwide 0% financing for 72 months offer with additional savings of up to $5,000 off MSRP.
The new Flash trim now features an up to $3,000 retail cash bonus, XLT and Lariat trims get up to $4,000, and the Platinum model gets a $5,000 bonus.
Ford’s electric pickup is eligible for the $1,000 Tesla Conquest bonus and public charging credit offer. Ram owners can snag an extra $2,000 from a serperate conquest program.
If you’re ready to test drive Ford’s electric vehicles for yourself, we can help you get started. You can use our links below to find Ford F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E models at a dealer near you.
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