Electric scooter manufacturer Govecs files for insolvency

Since 2017, the German company Govecs has produced the ‘E-Schwalbe’, an electric scooter inspired by the iconic East German original. The various models, offering different options in terms of battery capacity, power output, and top speed, are manufactured by a subsidiary in Poland.

However, the future of the E-Schwalbe is now in doubt, as Govecs has filed for insolvency at the Munich District Court. Under the reference 1542 IN 4079/25, the court has initiated preliminary insolvency proceedings for Govecs AG and appointed the prominent lawyer Michael Jaffé (known for his role in the Wirecard insolvency) as the preliminary insolvency administrator.

Jaffé will now oversee Govecs’ finances, with a mandate to protect the company’s remaining assets from “further detrimental developments,” effectively preventing funds from being depleted before liquidation and ensuring they remain available for the insolvency process. Concurrently, he must evaluate the company’s financial situation to determine whether operations can continue or if a partial sale or complete liquidation would be more viable. Govecs and its management, led by CEO Thomas Grübel, now have restricted access to company assets, and all expenditures require Jaffé’s approval.

As reported by WirtschaftsWoche, the company only published its 2022 annual report in the commercial register on 17 November 2025. The data reveals that Govecs was already in a precarious financial position in 2022, heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. During that fiscal year, the company sold just 2,250 e-scooters, generating revenue of €7.6 million but incurring an annual loss of €12.5 million. Supply chain disruptions forced Govecs to temporarily withdraw some models sold under its own brand from the market. Despite these challenges, the annual report projected a positive outlook for subsequent years, forecasting revenue of €21 million in 2025 with losses reduced to just €177,000.

Given that the 2022 annual report was only recently published, it remains unclear how revenue and losses have evolved since then, though the insolvency filing strongly suggests that the 2025 projections have not been met. Furthermore, auditors from PwC expressed “significant doubts about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern” in the 2022 annual report.

wiwo.de, verbraucherschutzforum.berlin, diebewertung.de (Munich District Court, all in German)

This article was first published by Sebastian Schaal for electrive’s German edition.