Sivers Semiconductors Faces Revenue Recognition Storm as Short Seller Targets $97 Million Discrepancy

Short-seller Ningi Research claims Sivers violated IFRS rules, questioning 31% of 2025 revenue. Shares fell 12% amid heavy trading, raising scrutiny on cash burn and revenue quality.

Investors in Sivers Semiconductors were caught off guard on June 1 when a devastating short-seller report sent the stock into a nosedive. Trading volumes exploded to 560 million Swedish kronor — more than double the next most active stock on the exchange, Saab — as shares swung wildly, initially dropping 8% before recovering intraday, only to close 12% lower. The ferocity of the selloff underscored deep unease about the Swedish photonics and semiconductor specialist’s accounting practices.

Ningi Research, the investment firm behind the attack, alleged that Sivers employed aggressive revenue recognition, potentially violating IFRS rules. The short seller claimed that at least 97 million kronor — roughly 31% of the company’s total reported revenue for 2025 — was questionable. Some of those revenues, Ningi argued, were tied to products that had not yet been manufactured or to government research subsidies presented as commercial sales. These are the accusations of a short seller, not formal findings, but they landed with force.

The timing was particularly damaging. Only days earlier, on May 29, Sivers had published its first-quarter report, revealing net sales of just 61.9 million kronor, a 22% decline year-over-year. Adjusted EBITDA was negative at minus 13.8 million kronor, and operating cash flow stood at minus 49.2 million kronor. Management blamed the U.S. government shutdown in the fourth quarter of 2025, delays in defense budgets, and unfavorable currency effects for the weak numbers.

Despite the top-line slump, Sivers continues to tout an enormous opportunity pipeline. At the end of Q1, the pipeline stood at $799 million, a 77% increase since year-end 2025. The gap between that forward-looking figure and actual booked revenues has never been wider. The company says several product ramps remain on track for 2027, including a production start for automotive LiDAR in the fourth quarter of 2026. It also highlighted a partnership with Jabil on a 1.6T transceiver module for AI data center photonics.

To shore up its finances, Sivers completed a capital raise of roughly 125 million kronor after the quarter. The company is also exploring a secondary listing on the Nasdaq in New York, a move that would broaden its investor base. But the short-seller allegations shift the narrative from AI-infrastructure hype to the nitty-gritty of cash burn and revenue quality. Every future announcement on photonics, wireless programs, or financial results will now face far more skeptical scrutiny.