BeyonCa, a luxury EV brand from the former vice president of the Volkswagen Group, Soh Weimin, reportedly collapsed in China, leaving hundreds of employees with unpaid wages. Ironically, this company received the ‘Most Valuable Company for Investment of the Year’ award in 2022.
BeyonCa recap
BeyonCa was founded in 2021 by the ex-vice president of Volkswagen Group, Soh Weiming, and the former member of the board of VW AG, Christian Klinger. This brand boasted promising prospects due to a strong team of employees with long track records at Volkswagen. Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler became the engineer in charge of R&D, and Lucas Colombo was appointed as the brand’s chief designer.
CarNewsChina carefully followed the BeyonCa development from the official launch day on October 30, 2022. Back in 2023, the brand’s officials claimed BeyonCa would sell around 100,000 cars in 3 – 5 years. In October 2023, BeyonCa signed an agreement with a Saudi Arabian investment group, aiming to enter the Middle Easter market. Later, the brand established a strategic partnership with the Municipal Government of Zhuji City, Zhejiang province.
The last time we heard of BeyonCa was June 28, 2024. It announced the establishment of the manufacturing plant in Hong Kong, intending to enter the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP)’s Advanced Manufacturing Centre at Tseung Kwan (A.K.A. InnoPark). However, the brand has been completely silent since then.
BeyonCa initially planned to commence the volume production of its first model in 2024. It was the GT Opus 1 electric coupe with a 5.2-meter body length and a 130-kWh battery. Its price was said to start from 1 million yuan (~140K USD). In 2025, CarNewsChina tried to reach the BeyonCa employee responsible for PR. However, she didn’t respond to our request.
BeyonCa collapse
On March 27, Chinese outlet Mydrivers reported that BeyonCa’s former and current employees released a joint letter, claiming that the company had completely ceased operations. According to a letter, despite receiving strategic investments from Renault and Dongfeng, BeyonCa collapsed, leaving hundreds of employees and their families without salaries in a survival crisis.
Employees shared that there is a lack of any formal notification or solution from the company. Management has been unreachable for a long time (which correlates with our experience of reaching the PR department). There has been no response regarding unpaid wages, unpaid social security contributions, and unpaid housing provident fund contributions.
At press time, employees set several demands. It includes full payment of all outstanding wages, social security, and housing provident fund contributions, settlement of personal reimbursements, payment of compensation, and a public response from the company and shareholders. Employees highlighted that they are ready to pursue their rights in court.
At this point, we are focused on the main question. How could a company with a management team entirely comprised of Volkswagen veterans and investments from Renault, Dongfeng, and Saudi Arabia’s Al Faisaliah Group Holding Company (AFG) silently shut down its operations, leaving its employees unpaid, without producing a single car? Moreover, it appears the company was nowhere near mass production.
If any CarNewsChina readers are current or former BeyonCa employees, we would love to hear from you about the company’s operations. Feel free to contact us at [email protected] and [email protected].
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