Ola buys Ridlr in bid to expand public transportation business

BENGALURU: India’s largest cabhailing firm Ola has bought transportation information provider Ridlr, as it looks to expand its fledgling public transportation business that has become an important battlefront in its fight with arch-rival Uber.

Ola (ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd) and Ridlr (Birds Eye Systems Pvt. Ltd) didn’t disclose the financial terms of the deal, which involved both cash and stock.

Ola started out as a private cab aggregator in 2011, but it has since added auto rickshaws and yellow taxis. After a slow start, Ola’s auto rickshaw business has become a differentiator for the company against Uber over the past year.

With the acquisition of Ridlr, Ola plans to add bus, metro and train ticket bookings on its platform and try and become a hub of urban transportation for customers. Ridlr’s team of 64 employees, including founder Brijraj Vaghani, will join Ola.

The move to expand its public transportation business is one of Ola’s most ambitious efforts. Cab rides comprise a minuscule part of urban transportation.

If Ola can build an early, meaningful lead in bus and train bookings, it will become difficult for Uber to catch up with its local rival. Ola and Uber, both of which count Japan’s SoftBank Group as their largest shareholder, have been locked in an expensive market-share battle.

“Public transportation serves millions of Indians every day, and powering these needs with realtime information, mobile ticketing, cashless payments, and reliable services is bound to impact their end-experience. The challenge really is to make the entire ecosystem inclusive and robust for all. Ridlr, in a short span, has made huge strides in this space, and this latest acquisition lends muscle to our efforts in making transportation a far more holistic service,” Ola co-founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal said in a statement.

Mint had reported on March 26 that Ola was in talks to buy Ridlr.

Since starting out in 2012, Mumbai-based Ridlr had raised $7-8 million in capital.

The company’s last funding round was in July 2016 when Times Internet, Matrix Partners and Qualcomm Ventures invested $6 million in the firm. Ridlr provides data on bus and train routes and prices in 19 cities and allows users to book tickets for public transportation services. It also provides real-time traffic information.

› This latest acquisition lends muscle to our efforts in making transportation a far more holistic service BHAVISH AGGARWAL, Ola CEO