Rad Power surprised the heck out of a lot of us when it filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy on December 15, 2025. The budget ebike brand had been one of the first bicycle brands to focus on electric bikes.
Founded in 2007, it rode the COVID-related sales boom of 2020 and 2021, becoming a household name among those shopping for an electric bike. But the firm has had a rough few years ever since.
On January 22, 2026, five firms bid for Rad Power’s assets. Life EV, which purchased the Serial 1 ebike brand from Harley-Davidson (yes, that Harley-Davidson) walked away as the winner after splashing $13.2 million.
What’s next?
With details of the sale rolling in slowly, we’re not sure if Life EV will continue using the Rad Power name. I’d say it’d be foolish to give up on such brand recognition, but after finding itself subject to a string of highly publicized lawsuits in 2022 and 2023, and federal warnings of its batteries being at riskof fires, the brand name has taken a bit of a hit.
Even after acquiring all of Rad Power’s inventory, intellectual property, and brand name (along with responsibility for honoring existing contracts, leases, and customer warranties), I think there’s a future for the Rad Power name continuing, though.
“The auction resulted in a successful bid, along with a backup bid, for the purchase of certain Rad assets,” a Rad spokesperson told GeekWire via email. “Any proposed transaction remains subject to court approval, and the sale is not final at this time.”
Having once been valued at $1.65 billion, according to GeekWire, Rad Power’s selling price is a fraction of what the industry behemoth had once been. But with a new owner at the helm, it’d be silly to count Rad Power out just yet.
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