Ola raises $400 mn to drive expansion into smaller cities

New Delhi: Leading mobile application provider for personal transportation, Ola (formerly Olacabs), has raised $400 million (Rs 2,491 crore) from venture funds to expand into smaller cities, and help drivers from these places turn entrepreneurs.

Ola had earlier raised funds from Tiger Global, Matrix Partners India, Steadview Capital and Sequoia Capital to expand into new cities offering cab services. The company has achieved growth in smaller cities, owing to limited transportation options available in those places.

“Our vision is that people shouldn’t find the need to own a car... With increasing smartphone penetration and immense growth in smaller cities and towns, we will be able to drive the benefits of this on-demand platform deeper into the lives of our customers and partners,” said Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder & CEO, Ola.

The latest “Series E round” of funds was led by DST Global with participation from GIC, Falcon Edge Capital and existing investors SoftBank Group, Tiger Global, Steadview Capital and Accel Partners US.

Ola has forayed into 100 cities in 2015 from 10 last year.

The company recently acquired TaxiForSure, India’s second-largest cab aggregator in March 2015, to strengthen its position in India. Ola has leveraged its strength as an on-demand platform by going beyond transportation into instant food delivery with OlaCafé — a food delivery service currently available across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.