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Hindenburg Accused Carvana of “Cooking Its Books.” What the Filings Say

Hindenburg’s 2025 short report accused Carvana of accounting manipulation. Carvana denied the claims, disclosed loan and DriveTime arrangements, and reported a related SEC subpoena without a regulatory finding.
From TheFinanceBase Team3 min to read
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Hindenburg Research accused Carvana of accounting manipulation in a January 2, 2025 report, but the allegation is not an established finding. Carvana rejected the claims and disclosed that the SEC subpoenaed it in June 2025 for information it believes primarily relates to the report. The company said it was cooperating; its annual-report disclosure does not report a regulatory conclusion.

What did Hindenburg accuse Carvana of?

Hindenburg’s January 2, 2025 report, titled “Carvana: A Father-Son Accounting Grift For The Ages,” characterized Carvana’s recovery as a “mirage.” Hindenburg is a short seller and disclosed a short position in Carvana securities, giving it a financial interest in a decline in the stock. Its allegations and descriptions should therefore be understood as claims by an interested party, not as independently established facts.

The report alleged that Carvana used aggressive auto-loan underwriting and accounting practices, and it questioned the sale and servicing of loans. Hindenburg also alleged that Ernest Garcia II, Carvana CEO Ernest Garcia III’s father, sold shares. The report’s characterizations, figures, and interview accounts are not, by themselves, proof that Carvana misstated its accounts or acted improperly.

Loan sales and a suspected connection

Hindenburg alleged that Carvana sold loans to an entity it suspected was connected to DriveTime. A January 2, 2025 Gizmodo article summarized Hindenburg’s assertion that Carvana sold $800 million in loans to a party Carvana described as unrelated. That amount is a secondary report of Hindenburg’s claim; it is not an amount confirmed by Carvana in the disclosures discussed below.

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Servicing and borrower extensions

Hindenburg questioned whether loan-servicing practices, including borrower extensions, could make loan performance appear stronger than it was. That is an allegation about the effect of the practices, not a finding that extensions were improper or that reported loan performance was manipulated.

What do Carvana’s filings disclose about loans and DriveTime?

Carvana’s 2025 definitive proxy statement reports substantial finance-receivable sales and servicing arrangements, including arrangements involving DriveTime. Those disclosures provide important context, but they do not settle Hindenburg’s claims about a particular purchaser, accounting treatment, underwriting standards, or borrower extensions.

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Arrangement described in Carvana’s 2025 proxy Company-reported figure What the figure covers
Amended Master Purchase and Sale Agreement with financing partners including Ally Bank and Ally Financial Commitment for up to $4.0 billion in principal balances Commitment period: January 11, 2024 through January 10, 2025
Sales under the purchase and sale agreement Approximately $3.0 billion in principal balances Sales during 2024 under that agreement
Seven transfer agreements tied to securitizations Approximately $3.8 billion in principal balances Balances purchased by trusts under the 2024 transfer agreements
DriveTime servicing under the Ally agreement Approximately $87.1 million in gross revenues DriveTime’s servicing functions during 2024
DriveTime servicing under the 2024 and historical transfer agreements Approximately $84.5 million in gross revenues Servicing during 2024 under these and historical transfer agreements

These are figures Carvana reported in its 2025 proxy for fiscal year 2024, not independent findings. The agreements and revenue categories are distinct and should not be combined or treated as interchangeable. The proxy’s disclosures also complicate a simplified account in which Carvana had stopped selling loans to independent financing partners: it identifies Ally among the independent financing partners and reports sales under that agreement.

Why DriveTime is a related-party connection

Carvana’s proxy identifies DriveTime as controlled by Ernest C. Garcia II, who is Carvana’s controlling stockholder and the father of CEO Ernest C. Garcia III. The proxy also describes other arrangements with DriveTime, including service-contract administration and other services. The company’s disclosed relationship and payments matter when assessing the allegations, but the existence of related-party business does not establish misconduct or improper accounting.

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How did Carvana respond?

In its 2025 annual report, Carvana said that after Hindenburg published its report, it engaged outside counsel to evaluate the allegations and voluntarily contacted the SEC. The company said management reaffirmed its conclusion that the report contained “inaccurate, incomplete, and otherwise misleading information about us.” That is Carvana’s position in its filing, not an independent determination of the claims.

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What does the SEC subpoena establish?

Carvana’s 2025 annual report says the company received an SEC subpoena in June 2025 requesting information that Carvana believes primarily relates to Hindenburg’s allegations. Carvana said it was cooperating with SEC staff.

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A subpoena requests information; it does not establish that allegations are true, nor does it amount to a finding of wrongdoing. The annual-report disclosure does not report an SEC conclusion. The sources described here establish the company’s account of the subpoena and its response, but do not establish whether regulators ultimately substantiated or dismissed Hindenburg’s claims.

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