Uber announced it will lay off 3,300 employees, roughly 10% of its workforce, to free up capital for a $10 billion autonomous taxi strategy, which includes equity investments in electric vehicle makers Lucid and Rivian. (Crypto Briefing via Techub News)
Shares of U.S. electric vehicle maker Lucid rose more than 20% to $7.82, according to market data from BIT (bit.com), after news that Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud had taken a 5% stake in the company. The prince spent $129.5 million to buy roughly 19.5 million Lucid shares, the report said. A spokesperson for him said the investment came after Lucid’s stock had fallen sharply in recent weeks. The move followed a stretch of heavy pressure on Lucid. The company had faced market concern over possible bankruptcy because of funding strain and ongoing losses. Lucid later denied the bankruptcy rumors, but confirmed it had hired restructuring adviser AlixPartners. That disclosure had previously sent the stock down as much as 57% in a single day. BlockBeats said the new investment was seen by the market as a sign of confidence in Lucid’s future and as support for sentiment around the company’s financial condition. Even so, Lucid still faces challenges tied to sales growth, profitability and cash flow.
Single-stock leveraged ETFs tied to AI and memory trades have expanded quickly as investors chase bigger gains from names such as SK Hynix. Odaily highlighted the danger with a fresh example from the U.S. market: GraniteShares 2x Long LCID Daily ETF, which tracked Lucid, was pushed into liquidation after Lucid shares plunged on a bankruptcy rumor during trading on July 14. Although Lucid later denied the report, said it had sufficient liquidity into next year, and saw its stock recover from the session low, the ETF had already closed out its position and moved into delisting. That left holders unable to benefit from any rebound in the underlying stock. The case has added to wider concern about single-stock leveraged products, especially in South Korea, where regulators are discussing tighter rules under the F4 policy framework. Measures under discussion include higher margin requirements, tighter daily price limits, and lower leverage caps. The report also notes that regulators are paying attention not only to market volatility but to the potential for financial losses, social media-driven speculation, and broader social fallout to feed into one another.
