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SoftBank-backed Swiggy’s IPO made a strong debut on November 13, with shares opening at ₹420 and rising to ₹449, defying earlier market expectations of a flat start. Another of the group’s investments in India, Ola Electric, made its secondary market debut in August.
Talking about Ola Electric in an exclusive interaction with CNBC-TV18, Sumer Juneja, managing partner for India and EMEA at SoftBank, said they are “in no hurry to exit”.
When asked if SoftBank would partially get out of Ola Electric once the lock-in period ends in six months or if it depends on the market, Juneja said, “depends on the performance of the company, but it’s definitely going to be a very thoughtful, gradual exit.”
Juneja’s remarks come after a Japanese investor announced its July to September quarter results, according to which Ola Electric added $401 million to SoftBank’s Vision Fund. This is the first earnings announcement after Ola Electric’s market debut.
SoftBank holds a 17.83% stake in Ola Electric as of September 2024. The Japanese technology investor had invested over ₹2,800 crore in the company.
Reflecting on India’s EV ride on the back of Ola Electric at a time when government subsidies are reducing, Juneja said, “Over the 5-10 year period, we should be reaching 30-40% penetration in EV. It is a large two-wheeler market. It is more economical in the long run for a consumer to have an EV. We make it at affordable prices.”
Also Read: Ola Electric on path to profitability, service backlog is history now, says Bhavish Agarwal
And, who will be the EV market leader? Juneja is of the view what Bhavish Aggarwal has created is “unbelievable” as he started the first EV revolution in India. “Take on the incumbents. Build a bike which is reliable. That’s fantastic. Now the bet is what kind of market share Ola Electric will have, and we are very confident that he’ll do a great job.”
Meanwhile, amid backlash over some of Ola Electric founder Aggawal’s tweets, Juneja, without naming anyone, said entrepreneurs of publicly listed companies must take a more cautious approach.
“It’s a public company…These entrepreneurs have finished their journey of dealing with private investors. They’re starting their journey to deal with public investors. Public investors are different, dynamic, and have different DNA. If they don’t like it, they can sell the stock immediately. The entrepreneurs will have to learn that they need to be a little more balanced in their approach and a bit more cautious of the way they communicate with the market.”
These remarks come days after Ola Electric and founder Bhavish Aggarwal were caught in the middle of a social media storm over the company’s poor service. What started as a tweet questioning Ola’s service by stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, translated into a war of words between the two, with disgruntled customers and even market participants jumping into the melee.
First Published: Nov 13, 2024 3:54 PM IST
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