- Ola Electric announces India's largest IPO of 2024, aiming to raise $734 million with shares priced between ₹72 and ₹76.
- The IPO marks the first listing by an Indian electric vehicle maker, with Ola positioning itself as "Tesla for the rest" of the world.
- The total issue size is ₹6,145.96 crore, including a fresh issue and an offer for sale, with major shareholders like SoftBank's SVF II Ostrich reducing their stakes.
According to a recent report by Reuters, Indian e-scooter company, Ola Electric, announced on Monday that its shares will be priced between ₹72 and ₹76 ($0.86-$0.91) for a $734 million initial public offering (IPO). This will be the largest IPO in India this year and the first by an Indian electric vehicle maker.
The SoftBank-backed company is the biggest player in a market where clean vehicle adoption is still low but rapidly increasing.
The catchphrase “Tesla is for the West and Ola is for the rest” is closely associated with Bhavish Aggarwal, chairman of Ola Electric. Aggarwal, who has frequently criticized gasoline and diesel vehicles, is making a significant investment in cleaner transportation.
The issue includes a new share offering worth ₹5,500 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 84.94 million shares, totaling ₹6,145.96 crore. The company's market capitalization will be about ₹33,500 crore.
Promoters Aggarwal and Indus Trust will sell 3.79 crore and 41.79 lakh shares, respectively. Among the investors, SVF II Ostrich (DE) LLC, the largest shareholder with a 21.98% stake (or 8.1 crore shares), will offload 2.38 crore shares.
Other selling shareholders include Alpha Wave Ventures II LP, Alpine Opportunity Fund VI LP, Internet Fund III Pte, MacRitchie Investments Pte, Matrix Partners India Investments III LLC, Tekne Private Ventures XV, and Ashna Advisors LLP.
Recently, Ola completely transitioned from Google Maps to its own Ola Maps, eliminating an annual expenditure of ₹100 crore previously allocated for mapping services. Aggarwal even emphasized that Ola Maps is designed to address India's unique mapping challenges. Utilizing AI algorithms and real-time data from millions of vehicles, Ola Maps aims to outperform competitors in accuracy and efficiency metrics.
Edited by Harshajit Sarmah
