Ola Electric raises funds over $200 million in a new financing round. It is at a valuation of $3 billion. This figure is up from $1 billion two years ago, as it looks to scale its electric vehicle manufacturing business in the South Asian market.
Details about Ola Electric raising funds
The Bangalore-based startup said that Falcon Edge Capital led the financing round. Furthermore, SoftBank also participated in the new round, which hasn’t closed. The news last month said that the startup was in talks to raise at over $2.75 billion valuation.
Ola Electric raises funds after recently launching its first electric scooter, called Ola S1, which is priced at 99,999 Indian rupees, or $1,350. The electric scooter offers a range of 121 kilometers (75 miles) on a complete charge. The startup said it had sold scooters worth $150 million in just two days.
Plans with the investment funds
The startup was once part of the ride-hailing giant Ola. It said that it plans to deploy the fresh funds’ Ola Electric has raised, to accelerate the development of other vehicle platforms. These include electric motorbike, mass-market scooter, and its electric car. It’s also setting up what is the world’s largest manufacturing factory for electric scooters. The 500-acre factory in the Southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu will have a capacity to produce roughly one electric scooter every two seconds.
We’re proud to lead the EV revolution from India to the world. India has the talent and the capability to build technologies of the future for the industries of the future for the entire world. I thank our existing investors and welcome new ones to Ola. Together we will bring mobility to a billion and sustainability to the future.
Bhavish Aggarwal, founder, and chief executive of Ola and Ola Electric.
India’s startup ecosystem
It is probably the environmental hazard New Delhi’s air had become in the past couple of years that was the inspiration. But, in recent quarters, Aggarwal has urged New Delhi, and players in the industry, to evolve from using gasoline-powered vehicles and switch to those run by electricity by 2025.
Meanwhile, Ola is serious about exploring the public markets. It may even file paperwork for an IPO this year. Ahead of this, the company recently closed a $500 million financing round from Temasek, Warburg Pincus, and Aggarwal.
We are finally getting to see companies in the Indian startup ecosystem that have matured enough to become public. India’s startup journey started in the late 2000s. What’s more, is that retail investors are showing great interest too.
Food delivery startup Zomato had a stellar debut on Indian stock exchanges earlier this year. Scores of other firms, including Paytm, MobiKwik, CarTrade, Nykaa, and PolicyBazaar, have filed the paperwork for their initial public offerings. Indian hospitality giant Oyo is expected to follow suit as soon as this week.
