Polestar (PSNY) stock slips after Hertz delays plans to buy EVs
Polestar (PSNY) shares are falling Monday after car rental giant Hertz (HTZ) announced plans to delay buying its EVs this year.
Scaling back electric vehicle plans
The news comes after the car rental giant said it would sell some of its Tesla models earlier this month.
In 2021, Hertz announced a massive 100,000 Tesla Model 3 order to bolster its EV rental offerings. Hertz followed it up by adding Tesla’s Model Y to its fleet the following year.
A month later, Hertz stuck its first deal with Polestar to add up to 65,000 Polestar EVs. It was a considerable order for the Swedish EV maker at the time after delivering just 29,000 vehicles in 2021. The agreement included purchasing up to 65K Polestar EVs through 2027.
It was also part of Hertz’s goal of EVs accounting for a quarter of its fleet by the end of 2024. However, those plans have since fallen through.
In early January, Hertz revealed it was selling about 20,000 Tesla vehicles. Hertz said it would use some of the proceeds to buy new gas-powered cars after Tesla’s prices fell from their peak. It also announced it would not hit its 25% EV fleet goal by the end of the year.
Hertz delays plans to buy Polestar EVs this year
Now, Hertz is delaying plans to buy Polestar EVs this year. Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath told the Financial Times that Hertz CEO Stephen Sherr inquired about pausing the purchase of EVs in 2024 last fall.
Polestar has already sold about 20,000 EVs to the car rental giant over the past two years. According to FT, the Swedish EV maker agreed to waive the required 2024 order.
In return, Hertz agreed not to sell Polestar’s vehicles too early or cheaply, Ingelath said. He explained that the two companies agreed to “keep the cars longer than a year.” If Hertz wants to take Polestar EVs out of its fleet, “we have the right to first refusal.”
Hertz and Polestar have “clear intentions” to reboot large-scale sales, but whether that will happen in 2025 remains unclear. Ingenlath said the companies would “have to review at the time.”
The news comes after Volvo announced plans to sell its nearly 50% stake in Polestar to parent company Geely. Volvo also said it would not be investing in the brand going forward.
Polestar stock was down another 6% in pre-market trading. PSNY shares are now down over 70% over the past 12 months.
Electrek’s Take
Hertz’s business model puts the company at high risk while car prices are volatile because it owns its vehicles outright.
The car rental company bought Tesla’s vehicles close to their peak prices. Tesla’s price cuts last year led to lower resale values, putting further strain on Hertz’s margins.
Hertz emerged from bankruptcy after the pandemic halted travel, hitting rental and vacation companies especially hard. The rental giant is set to report earnings on Tuesday. We’ll learn more about Hertz’s financial situation following the release.
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In this photo illustration, the logo for the US tech firm “Block” is displayed and reflected in a number of digital screens on March 03, 2023 in London, England.
Leon Neal | Getty Images
With its stock down more than 30% this year and revenue growth slowing, Jack Dorsey’s Block is going bigger in lending.
The company on Thursday said it secured approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to originate loans through its banking subsidiary, Square Financial Services, allowing it to offer small-dollar consumer loans directly rather than relying on external banking partners.
It’s an expansion of Cash App Borrow, the company’s short-term lending product. But it comes at a time of increased concerns surrounding consumer credit, with President Trump’s expansive tariffs and widespread government job cuts raising talk of a potential recession.
Transaction losses in Block’s lending segment jumped 39% last quarter, and while the company claims its underwriting model is strong, small-dollar lending is inherently risky.
“Cash App Borrow is designed to provide short-term cash flow in a simple and accessible way when alternatives are notoriously expensive and difficult for consumers to navigate,” Block said in the press release. The company added that the average Cash App Borrow loan was under $100 and about a month in duration.
Block didn’t immediately provide a comment.
In getting approval to operate the lending business out of its own bank, Block says it will be able to offer the product nationwide.
Last month, Block reported quarterly results that missed Wall Street expectations, with revenue growing just 4.5% from a year earlier. The stock plunged 18%, its worst one-day drop since 2020.
Around the same time, Block rolled out Afterpay, its buy now, pay later product, on the Cash App card. Chief Financial Officer Amrita Ahuja told CNBC that the launch aimed to provide customers with more credit options, and positioned Cash App as a banking alternative for some customers. Block acquired Afterpay, which competes with Affirm, for $29 billion in early 2022.
Also this week, Block announced a big investment plan in artificial intelligence.
The company said on Wednesday that it will deploy Nvidia’s AI systems with its latest Blackwell chips to power open-source AI research. Block didn’t say what specifically it’s looking to achieve through its AI buildout, but noted in the press release that it will “start exploring novel solutions for our customers.”
![Kia's first electric van looks even better in person [Video]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/03/Kias-first-electric-van-PV5-1.jpeg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
Kia is launching its first electric van, the PV5, later this year. If you liked how it looked in pictures, wait until you see it in real life. A production PV5 was spotted in Korea for the first time, giving us a closer look at the futuristic van. See it for yourself in the video below.
Kia’s first electric van spotted in Korea
After teasing it for what seemed like forever, Kia finally took the sheets off the PV5 at its 2025 EV Day event last month.
With its hard-to-miss futuristic design, the PV5 is a near replica of the concept shown at CES last January. The mid-size electric van is set to kick off Kia’s new Platform Beyond Vehicle (PBV) strategy.
The PV5 will initially be available in Passenger, Cargo, and Chassis Cab setups, but with “unprecedented flexibility,” you can expect to see more options soon. Two of the first will be the PV5 Crew, with additional cargo securing options and a Wheelchair-Accessible Vehicle (WAV) version.
After that, Kia will follow it up with Drop Side, Box Van, Freezer, Box, and Prime variations. It plans to launch a Light Camper conversion.
With sales kicking off in the second half of 2025, Kia’s electric van was spotted in Korea for the first time without camouflage. A new video from HealerTV gives us a better idea of what to expect when the PV5 hits dealerships later this year.
The PV5 maintains its techy, almost ahead-of-its-time design. Two exterior body colors were shown: white and a darker grey or black. As the reporter notes, it actually looks like an upgrade from the concept.
Kia did what it could at the back so it didn’t look like a bus, giving it more of a rounded overall shape. You can see how it stands apart from most MPVs you see today.
Like the Volkswagen ID.Buzz, Kia’s PV5 looks more like a minibus. At 4,695 mm long, 1,895 mm wide, and 1,899 mm tall, Kia’s passenger electric van is slightly smaller than the European ID.Buzz model (4,712 mm long, 1,985 mm wide, 1,937 mm tall).
It will be available with 51.5 kWh and 71.2 kWh battery packs, good for up to 400 km (249 miles) WLTP range. The PV5 can also fast charge (10% to 80%) in about 30 minutes. In comparison, powered by an 84 kWh battery, the ID.Buzz now offers up to 293 miles WLTP range.
Kia will launch sales in Korea and Europe later this year, followed by other global markets in 2026. Pre-orders will open soon, so check back for prices.
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