Online cab and auto booking service provider Ola has raised $315 million funding led by DST Global, with participation from existing investors Tiger Global, Accel Partners and Steadview Capital, reports Business Standard. The report mentions that a filing with the Registrar of Companies revealed that DST Global invested $206 million, Tiger Global $40.65 million, Steadview Capital $10.5 million and Accel Partners $5 million. Ola’s other existing investors Softbank and Matrix Partners did not participate in this round.
DST Global’s Yuri Milner, apparently, already holds a stake in Ola in his personal capacity. This funding is believed to have been closed last week, when Ola’s owner ANI Technologies issued series-G preference shares to multiple funds of DST Global and some existing investors.
In October last year, Ola raised $210 million from Softbank and existing investors, post which SoftBank Internet and Media Inc CEO and ex-Google executive Nikesh Arora joined the board of Ola. The company had also raised $40 million from Steadview Capital and Sequoia Capital, with participation from existing investors Tiger Global and Matrix Partners, a few months before that.
Last month, Ola acquired its Bangalore-based competitor TaxiForSure in a cash and stock deal worth $200 million. Following the acquisition, Ola and TaxiForSure have continued independent operations, and TaxiForSure’s investors are expected to roll over their stock into Ola.
Ola had introduced kaali-peeli taxi hailing services in Mumbai in October last year and began offering booking of auto rides in Bangalore a month later. It also introduced cashless payments for autorickshaw and kaali peeli cab rides, last month. Recently, the company had also launched a food delivery service called OlaCafe for users to order food from nearby using the Ola app. The service is currently available in parts of Bangalore, Hyderabad, Delhi and Mumbai and users can pay either via Ola money or through cash.
Center against banning Ola and Uber apps in Delhi
Earlier this year, the Delhi government had asked the Center to block Uber and Ola’s apps in the city, till their radio taxi licenses are processed and cleared. The Center has, however, decided against banning the apps and instead wants to impose more stringent conditions to ensure passenger safety. The transport ministry is expected to issue an advisory in the next 3 weeks, spanning all states, which will bring web-based cab aggregators under the Motor Vehicles Act.
