(Yicai Global) Feb. 7 -- Shares of Faraday Future Intelligent Electric, an automaker founded by Chinese businessman Jia Yueting, plunged despite the startup saying it had secured USD135 million from new and existing investors to begin making and delivering its first electric vehicles.

Faraday Future [NASDAQ: FFIE] closed down almost 27 percent at 79 US cents in New York yesterday, after opening up 22 percent on the news.

The latest investors included affiliates of ATW Partners and investment units under Acuitas Capital, the California-based carmaker said on WeChat yesterday. The new funding, combined with the USD33.4 million secured in December, is enough to start production of the FF 91 Futurist by the end of March and begin deliveries by the end of April, it said.

Faraday Future will receive USD80 million within 10 business days and the remainder of the funding within five days after meeting certain conditions, which it did not specify.

In a Weibo post yesterday, Jia called on shareholders to approve a proposal to issue additional Class-A common shares in the future. If approved at an extraordinary general meeting on Feb. 28, it would clear the way for ongoing financing to support mass production.

The FF 91, a sport utility vehicle, was unveiled six years ago and should have been available from the first half of 2022, according to the company’s S4 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission last April. Despite raising a total of USD5 billion since it was set up eight years ago, Faraday Future has repeatedly delayed deliveries.

Editor: Futura Costaglione