Ola gets $500 million from Temasek, Warburg ahead of stock market debut

Singapore
government’s investment fund Temasek Holdings and private equity major Warburg
Pincus are leading a $500 million investment into Ola ahead of the launch of
its Initial Public Offer (IPO), the ride-sharing firm said on Friday.

This is among the
largest investments in the Indian consumer market space by these funds. A
company release stated that the investment is a testament to the robust and
resilient business built by Ola as it continues to scale up across categories.  

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“Over the
last 12 months, we’ve made our ride-hailing business more robust, resilient,
and efficient. With strong recovery post lockdown and a shift in consumer
preference away from public transportation, we are well-positioned to
capitalise on the various urban mobility needs of our customers,” said
Bhavish Aggarwal, Chairman and Group CEO, Ola.

Aggarwal added
that he is looking forward to collaborate with new partners in its ‘next phase
of growth’.

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However, the
company did not specify a timeline for its IPO. An IPO is expected to help Ola
investors like SoftBank, Tiger Global and Steadview Capital exit or partially
sell their stake in the company to return funds to their shareholders.

Founded in 2011,
Ola serves India, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. Uber is its primary competitor
in these markets. The company was founded Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati.

Discussing the
investment, managing director and Head of India at Warburg Pincus, Vishal
Mahadevia, said that Warburg is excited to partner with Ola and Bhavish
Aggarwal.

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“They are
the leading mobility platform and one of biggest consumer internet platforms in
India with a robust and fast-growing business. We look forward to collaborating
with Bhavish and the team in the next phase of Ola’s growth,” said
Mahadevia.

Over
the last one year, Ola has been concentrating on the launch of electric
vehicles. Bhavesh Aggarwal recently announced that the company will start the
production of electric scooters soon. Ola
Electric is a separate entity which has the backing of Tiger Global, SoftBank
as well as Temasek.