In March 2019, Hyundai and Kia Motors joined hands to make a $300 million investment in the Indian transport network giant, Ola Cabs. This arrangement started to fall apart when the Competition Commission of India (CCI) intervened.
Known popularly as the ‘anti-trust watchdog’, CCI asked Ola’s parent company, ANI Technologies, to submit a report on the competitive landscape. The inability to present the necessary documentation on time led to the termination of the application.
In its attempt to persuade the CCI, Ola appealed for a second time in September 2019 with a small change in the agreement – $250 million to be invested in Ola Cabs and $50 million in Ola Electric Mobility, Ola’s Electric Vehicles (EV) Business spinoff.
Bhavish Aggarwal, Co-founder & CEO of Ola said, “This partnership will also significantly benefit driver-partners on our platform, as we collaborate with Hyundai to build vehicles and solutions that enable sustainable earnings for millions of them, in the time to come.”
Whether the second application receives approval or ends up being dismissed, is yet to be seen. What do you think will be the end result in this game of corporate tug-of-war?
