In its first trading session on Friday, shares of Ola Electric shot up 20%, valuing the Indian electric car startup at almost $4.8 billion.
Ola Electric raised almost $730 million through its initial public offering in Mumbai by pricing its shares at 76 rupees, or 91 cents. Reuters claims that it is the largest listing in India for this year.
By 3:52 p.m. local time, the value of the shares was approximately 91.20 rupees.
The company’s first-day increase is the result of investors’ bets that it will emerge as a major player in India’s electric vehicle market at a time when the government is taking steps to support the sector.
Just two and a half years ago, Ola Electric, a manufacturer of electric scooters, shipped its first unit.
In India, two-wheelers are the most widely used form of transportation. According to research from McKinsey & Co., electric two-wheelers in particular are predicted to make up 60% to 70% of all new scooter sales in India by 2030.
As it gets ready to release its first electric motorcycle product in the second half of 2025, Ola Electric is attempting to capitalize on this trend.
Like Tesla, the venture was started by well-known businessman Bhavish Aggarwal and bills itself as a corporation that can handle everything from design to manufacture and batteries.
However, as of right now, it doesn’t seem like the corporation has any intentions to enter the auto industry.
Temasek, an investment group based in Singapore, and SoftBank are two well-known investors in Ola Electric.
The business stated that it intends to utilize the profits from the initial public offering (IPO) to finance the growth of its gigafactory battery production, pay down debt, and increase research and development.
In the year that concluded on March 31, the company’s sales increased by 90% on an annual basis, but its losses increased. The business hasn’t made any money yet.
Aggarwal is also a co-founder of Ola Cabs, an Indian ride-hailing service.