NIO split the battery from the car, rented it monthly, and made swapping licensable

EVs cost too much largely because of the battery, and charging was slow. NIO had swapped batteries at stations since its founding, but could not separate car and battery ownership until China's MIIT stopped requiring them to be registered as one unit in 2020.

On 20 August 2020 NIO launched BaaS: consumers buy the car without the battery and pay a monthly rental instead. The batteries belong to Wuhan Weineng, a battery asset company set up two days earlier with NIO, CATL, Guotai Junan International and Hubei provincial capital each holding 25%. The 'two-invoice' model let NIO sell the car and rent the pack through the asset company, which raised about 2 billion yuan in its first year.

Standardized packs made the swap network the backbone: users can charge or swap in minutes, and NIO expanded to more than 2,400 stations by May 2024 — 65% of all swap stations in China. The model also cut entry price and insurance cost since the battery is excluded from the car.

Sell the car; rent the battery

Renting the battery cuts the purchase price sharply

The battery asset company keeps debt off NIO's books

Standard packs make the swap network one shared infrastructure

Stations become a service other automakers can license

When the costliest component blocks adoption, sell it as a service: moving the asset to a partner and renting it back lowers the entry price and keeps heavy assets off your books.

By 2024 six automakers, including GAC and FAW, signed swap-alliance cooperation with NIO on battery standards and network sharing; 2025 deliveries rose and NIO posted its first positive operating quarter. BYD's flash-charging launch in 2026 reopened the question of whether swapping stays necessary.