Rad Power Bikes Changed Hands This Year — Here’s What Happened and What It Means for Owners

Rad Power Bikes has been one of the biggest names in American e-bikes for years. But the brand went through a genuine upheaval in 2026 that’s worth knowing about.

What actually happened

Rad Power Bikes filed for bankruptcy, and its assets — brand, intellectual property, inventory, and operations — were bought out through a court-approved sale. The buyer was Life Electric Vehicles Holdings, a company built specifically around acquiring electric mobility brands. The deal, agreed in December 2025, closed in March 2026 at a total price of roughly $14.9 million (once liabilities were factored in). Rad Power Bikes was then renamed Rad Life Mobility.

If you’re an existing Rad owner, the practical detail is this: the new owner said it plans to honour certain existing warranties and gift cards under the terms of the sale. It also plans to keep running retail operations under the Rad Power Bikes name in the US, with production eventually shifting to US-based manufacturing.

It’s not just Rad

Life EV’s approach is to buy up multiple e-bike brands and run them as a group. This is sometimes called a “roll-up” strategy. Alongside Rad, the same parent company also owns Serial 1, the premium e-bike brand originally spun out of Harley-Davidson. And in June 2026 it added QuietKat, a brand focused on hunting and backcountry off-road e-bikes.

That gives Rad Life Mobility three distinct brands covering three different kinds of rider. Rad for everyday utility and commuting. Serial 1 for the premium end. And QuietKat for serious off-road use. Company executives have described the QuietKat deal as opening entirely new customer categories, on top of the purchasing power that comes with running a bigger group.

The Europe question

Rad Power Bikes largely wound down its European operations before bankruptcy. At Eurobike 2026, though, Rad Life Mobility showed up with Rad, Serial 1 and QuietKat all on the same stand. That suggests a signal of intent to bring Rad back to European buyers. It also builds on the fact that Serial 1 has already found a following on the continent.

Nothing concrete is confirmed on timing, pricing or which models would come first. But the direction of travel looks favourable.

We will update this if UK or European availability firms up.