Jia Yueting never fails to surprise. At Pebble Beach, California, the founder of Faraday Future (FF) held another press conference, announcing a plan even more "forward-looking" than car manufacturing – the "EAI+Crypto Dual Flywheel Strategy."
This time, his presentation slides featured no cars, but rather abstract concepts like cryptocurrency asset indices, treasuries, and ETF licenses. The plan includes launching the C10 cryptocurrency index led by a public company and building a crypto asset treasury (C10 Treasury) with an initial target of $5-10 billion. Of course, the key message to investors was clear: this approach can generate profits, and substantial ones at that.
**Entering the Crypto Arena**
The "EAI+Crypto" dual flywheel strategy represents another new narrative Jia Yueting has crafted for market management. True to form, his presentations wouldn't be complete without introducing fresh concepts. Let's examine these seemingly unrelated "flywheels" and the real forces driving their rotation.
The two flywheels are the "EAI flywheel" and the "Crypto flywheel." EAI stands for "Embodied AI," designed to give FF vehicles "soul, emotion, and personality." In practical terms, this refers to the massive LED screen called Super EAI F.A.C.E. (Front AI Communication Ecosystem) on FF's recently launched second brand, FX Super One, along with in-car AI assistants. The system can perceive environments, understand users, and communicate emotions with the outside world through visual effects on the screen.
While "EAI" represents Jia Yueting's latest car manufacturing philosophy, carrying forward Faraday Future's original automotive business, the "Crypto flywheel" introduces an entirely new concept – cryptocurrency business encompassing four categories: crypto asset finance, crypto asset portfolio ETFs, crypto asset indices, and EAI+Crypto ecosystem applications.
If "EAI" is the technological coating FF applies to its products, then the "Crypto" strategy represents an attempt to chart new financial directions for the company. This strategy has one core objective: improving operational conditions and enhancing capital returns.
Understanding this strategy requires grasping another concept – the C10 index. According to the presentation, this is the "first basket cryptocurrency asset portfolio index initiated by a US-listed company." The index has a benchmark of 1000, with the baseline taken from data at UTC midnight on August 16, appearing similar to the Dow Jones Industrial Average or S&P 500.
However, unlike those established indices with completely transparent selection criteria, weighting methodologies, and adjustment mechanisms available for global investor verification and replication, the C10 index remains largely mysterious. Beyond its impressive name, core information about its composition, methodology, and management remains unknown.
Accompanying the C10 index is the C10 Treasury plan – the core business driving the Crypto flywheel. Simply put, it packages ten major mainstream cryptocurrencies into an index-type product, similar to a fund. The asset allocation model employs an "80% passive + 20% active" portfolio configuration, with 80% strictly following passive C10 index allocation and 20% actively managing the top ten cryptocurrencies by market capitalization (excluding stablecoins and fake coins), with monthly dynamic adjustments.
When profits are generated, a "triple-third interest distribution" plan will be executed, periodically distributing staking interest income according to shareholding ratios: one-third supporting FFAI automotive business development, one-third for treasury reallocation, and one-third for stock buybacks after board approval, enhancing shareholder returns and market value support.
Notably, FFAI is preparing to apply for cryptocurrency asset index fund ETF licenses. FF has already projected C10 Treasury's value returns, stating that current industry average annual staking rates of 3-5% could generate approximately $30-50 million in fixed annual income from a $1 billion C10 Treasury.
The first phase involves a $30 million initial purchase as part of a total $5-10 billion procurement plan, set to begin implementation next week. The company expressed intentions to continuously increase investments, hoping to reach hundreds of billions in scale.
But where will the money come from? The qualifier "upon obtaining necessary funding" in their statements reveals everything.
Worth noting, Crypto flywheel business will be operated independently by FFAI's wholly-owned subsidiary, with business and finances completely isolated from FFAI's EAI EV operations, ensuring operational independence and risk isolation. Currently, FF is applying to register this wholly-owned subsidiary: FFAI Crypto Treasury and Bridging Holdings Inc.
According to FFAI, the seemingly unrelated business flywheels have a mutually empowering relationship. EAI EV features long cycles, capital intensity, technology intensity, high value, and gradual development; Crypto represents short cycles, fast pace, high value, and immediate cash cow characteristics. EAI EV's technology and product accumulation accelerate Crypto's commercialization and application, while Crypto's created value feeds back into EAI EV mass production expansion and brand upgrades.
Clearly, Jia Yueting is now waiting for money to arrive.
**How Much Funding Can New Stories Generate?**
When traditional capital markets closed doors to Jia Yueting, he turned to wilder "financial experiments." FFAI's ambitious crypto treasury plan resembles more of a "financing proposal" sent to the cryptocurrency world.
Before formally entering crypto products, FFAI plans to use its over 10,000 vehicle pre-orders (certificates for user-ordered but undelivered vehicles) as underlying assets. Through partner RWA Group, they'll package the "future potential revenue rights" these orders represent, designing them as digital tokens that can be issued and traded on blockchain. Another partner, HabitTrade, provides the trading platform, allowing users to purchase these tokens with stablecoins like USDT.
In essence, this means selling future potential income in advance to obtain immediately usable money – using car sale promises to finance car manufacturing. Before FFAI attempted this, few could imagine such creative financing methods.
The countless events occurring around FFAI would prove devastating for other automakers. However, Jia Yueting's every new story seems capable of extending hope for his "car manufacturing dream," consistently bringing this perpetually delisting-threatened company back from the brink.
One direct statistic: FF has secured over $5 billion in financing during its eleven-year existence. The most recent round occurred just last month, with foreign media reporting Faraday Future signed approximately $105 million (about 750 million yuan) in financing agreements.
Jia Yueting's car manufacturing venture is even experiencing a small peak. Recently, the second brand "Faraday X"'s first MPV – Super One – achieved explosive orders. Within one hour of the launch event, 10,034 paid orders were placed, though these were small orders with only $100 deposits. Additionally, there were high-value B2B paid pre-orders.
Jia Yueting stated, "FX's B2B paid pre-orders total over 4,100 units." According to disclosed data, New York's JC Auto ordered 1,000 units, California ride-sharing service Skyhorse added 300 units, and Los Angeles NewPBB Auto ordered 600 units. The largest customer, Southern California real estate agency Pinnacle Real Estate, ordered 1,000 units outright, creating a new "car-house bundle" concept – free cars with home purchases.
Since B2B orders include non-refundable deposit contracts with legal binding force, representing genuine commitments, while 4,100 units might not match domestic automakers' half-month sales, for FFAI – which delivered only 16 vehicles over 11 years – this constitutes astronomical numbers.
Support from B2B customers demonstrates that Jia Yueting's pivot from B2C to B2B proves much more viable than previous approaches, avoiding traditional sector competition while rekindling capital profit hopes.
This success might also stem from more "practical" vehicle models. Setting aside various controversies surrounding the cars themselves, mainstream market pricing neither reaches FF91's unattainable heights nor falls into low-end price war quagmires, filling gaps in America's mid-to-high-end pure electric/extended-range MPV market.
Feedback from B2B customer types – rental companies, premium ride services – shows commercial markets prioritize practicality and cost-effectiveness over flashy features, suggesting Jia Yueting has found the right positioning.
However, while concept engines can run at full speed, they ultimately require fuel. That fuel can only come from real vehicles rolling off production lines at the Hanford, California factory.
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