(Yicai Global) Aug. 29 -- Nio, a Chinese new energy vehicle manufacturer, has finished its internal review and concluded that the allegations of inflated sales that short-seller Grizzly Research made in a recent report are "not substantiated."

An independent committee of Nio's board of directors, which consulted third-party professional advisors such as forensic accounting experts, has gathered that Grizzly Research's recent report is unfounded, the Shanghai-based firm said in a press release recently.

Nio's Hong Kong-listed shares [HKG: 9866] closed 0.1 percent down at HKD153 (USD19.50). The stock price has slid 4 percent this year.

Nio's US-listed shares [NYSE: NIO] were 1.2 percent down in pre-market trading after dropping 0.8 percent to USD19.92 on Aug. 29.

The NEV maker is likely using a Wuhan-based affiliate called Weineng to exaggerate its revenue and profitability, the Delaware-headquartered short-seller said in a report on June 28. In particular, it said Nio has been flooding Weineng with more than 20,000 batteries to realize revenue before selling the inventory to clients.

On June 29, Nio said the report is "without merit and contains numerous errors." It said its board of directors is reviewing the allegations and considering the appropriate course of action to protect the interests of all shareholders.

After the short-seller's report, several overseas financial giants, including Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase, as well as a unit of Chinese brokerage Daiwa Securities Group, have released reports to suggest the claims are not true and recommended investors increase their holdings of Nio.

Grizzly Research has a team of analysts in the United States and it employs its own private investigators in China, according to its website. The firm has published more than 20 reports since May 2019 and several of them target Chinese companies such as video live-streaming platform Douyu International Holdings and online classifieds marketplace 58.Com.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi