Ola Electric announced on Thursday that it has risen over $200 million in a fresh fundraising round; valuing the company at $3 billion, up from $1 billion two years ago. The company is looking to develop its electric vehicle manufacturing operations in the South Asian market.
The funding round was spearheaded by Falcon Edge Capital, according to the Bangalore-based business. SoftBank was also a part of the new round, which is still open. Last month, TechCrunch claimed that the business was in talks to seek $2.75 billion in funding.
Ola Electric just launched its first electric scooter, the Ola S1, which costs 99,999 Indian rupees (about $1,350). On a full charge, the electric scooter has a range of 121 kilometers (75 miles). In just two days, the business claimed to have sold scooters worth $150 million. The business, which was previously a part of the ride-hailing behemoth Ola, said it will use the new capital to speed up development of other vehicle platforms like an electric motorcycle, mass-market scooter, and its own electric automobile. It’s also constructing the world’s largest electric scooter production facility.
The 500-acre plant in Tamil Nadu, India’s southernmost state will be able to create one electric scooter every two seconds. “We’re honored to be at the forefront of the electric vehicle revolution from India to the rest of the world. India has the talent and capability to develop future technology for future sectors that will benefit the entire planet. I’d want to thank all of our current investors and welcome any new ones to Ola. In a statement, Ola’s founder and CEO, Bhavish Aggarwal, stated, “Together, we will bring mobility to a billion people and sustainability to the future.” Aggarwal, who is also the founder and CEO of Ola Electric, is depicted above.
Aggarwal has recently asked New Delhi and industry participants to transition away from gasoline-powered automobiles and toward electric vehicles by 2025. Meanwhile, Ola is seriously considering going public and may file the necessary paperwork for an IPO this year. Temasek, Warburg Pincus, and Aggarwal recently led a $500 million fundraising round for the firm.
The journey of India’s startup ecosystem, which began in the late 2000s, is finally producing organizations that have developed to the point where they can become public companies. Retail investors are also expressing a lot of interest.
Zomato, a food delivery service, made a successful debut on Indian stock exchanges earlier this year. Paytm, MobiKwik, CarTrade, Nykaa, and PolicyBazaar are among the companies that have submitted papers for their initial public offerings. According to TechCrunch, Indian hotel giant Oyo is poised to follow suit as soon as this week.
