Hyundai may get a 4 percent stake in Ola after the deal is finalised in the next few weeks.
Automaker Hyundai may foray into India's car-sharing business with an investment of $250 million in cab aggregator Ola. After this transaction, Ola's valuation would exceed $6 billion, sources told The Times of India.
The deal is in its final stages and will be finalised in the next few weeks. Thi deal will be the first of its kind. There have been cases when automobile companies have invested in smaller shared-car companies. For example, Mahindra and Ford had invested in self-ride company, Zoomcar. Hyundai may get a 4 percent stake in Ola after the deal is finalised in the next few weeks.
Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.
Ola has been looking to raise funds around $400-500 million. Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal and Hong Kong's Steadview Capital have become a part of this funding round. The company is also in talks with Mirae Asset-Naver Asia Growth Fund for picking up $30-40 million, one of the sources cited above said.
None of the parties responded to queries regarding the deal.
If the deal goes through, Hyundai may push its vehicles, including the upcoming EV Kona to the leasing unit of Ola Fleet Technologies. The carmaker also looks to convert some of its older models into electric cars, like Grand i10.
Industry analysts say that cab hailing companies like Ola and Uber have 7-8 lakh cars in operation. The companies and drivers have leased nearly 1 lakh cars over the past few years. There has been a dip in these numbers recently due to a shift in focus to other modes of transportation like auto-rickshaws.
