Ola acquires Mumbai-based commuting app Ridlr
Ola announced the acquisition earlier today
Cab aggregator Ola on Tuesday announced the acquisition of Mumbai-based Ridlr, an end-to-end public transport ticketing, and commuting app.
”The acquisition complements Ola’s continued efforts to integrate its mobility platform with public transportation infrastructure,” Ola said in a statement.
The acquisition, an all-stock deal at an undisclosed valuation, will allow Ola to offer a seamless experience to commuters opting for a mix of trasit services.
“Public transportation serves millions of Indians every day, and powering these needs with real-time 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,” said Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder and CEO of Ola.
Ridlr was founded in 2012 by Brijraj Vaghnani and Ravi Khemani. It serves commuters in Mumbai and Delhi with partnerships with BEST, Delhi Metro, and Mumbai metro, along with pilots in many other cities.
With this acquisition, Ola will bring new technology and mobility options as it works to expand into and partner cities in India and abroad.
Ridlr will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of ANI Technologies, which owns Ola brand. It’s team of 64 employees will now become a part of Ola. Brijraj Vaghani, founder of Ridlr, will continue to lead the operations.
”By joining forces with Ola, we are delighted to become part of an evolved ecosystem that will act as a one-stop destination for any urban commute in an affordable and seamless manner,” Vaghani said.
The company last raised USD 6 million in July 2016 from Matrix Partners (who also has a stake in Ola), Times Internet and Qualcomm Ventures.
Ridlr has also amassed a massive fan following on social media over the years. It’s Mumbai-focused Twitter account alone boasts of near 31 lakh followers.
Last year, Ola had bought food ordering app Foodpanda from its German parent Delivery Hero AG to re-enter the food delivery business and take on rivals like Uber Eats, Zomato and Swiggy. Ola had acquired smaller rival TaxiForSure in March 2015.
We have a new member joining the Ola family!!!
We’re happy to welcome @RidlrMUM onboard.
The acquisition complements Ola’s consistent and continuous efforts to integrate its mobility platform with existing public transportation solutions.
Read more – https://t.co/RxqxIrYmiI pic.twitter.com/MjjuqQa6TF— Ola (@Olacabs) April 3, 2018
