CCI okays Hyundai, Kia's stake buy in ANI Technologies, Ola Electric

The Competition Commission on Wednesday said it has approved acquisition of shares by Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors in ANI Technologies and Ola Electric.

As per a notice, the transaction pertains to the acquisition of minority equity stake in ANI Technologies and Ola Electric by Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors.

Fair trade regulator in a tweet said it "approves acquisition of shares in ANI Technologies and OLA Electric by Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors subject to compliance of modifications."

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"The Commission approved the proposed combination subject to the carrying of modifications proposed by Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors Corporation," the Competition Commission of India (CCI) said in a release.

The proposed transaction does not give rise to any competition concerns, it added.

In India, ANI Technologies provides radio taxi services under the name of Ola. Further, ANI Technologies, through its subsidiary Ola Fleet Technologies, is engaged in operational leasing.

Ola Electric provides charging infrastructure services for electric vehicles in India.

This September, Automakers Hyundai and Kia Motors invested an undisclosed amount in Ola Electric Mobility, at more than $1 billion valuation. Thus, gave it the status of a unicorn. The development followed the $300 million investment made by the South Korean automaker Hyundai in ANI Technologies, which owns Ola cabs.

As per the latest report, Ola is now in advanced talks to raise about $150-200 million (about Rs 1,050-1,400 crore) in funding from tech giant Microsoft, according to sources. The discussions are at an advanced stage and likely to be closed in the next 10-15 days, the sources privy to the development said.

In 2017, Ola and Microsoft had joined hands to build a new connected vehicle platform for car makers globally.

The company, in September this year, had received Rs 35.8 crore in Series J round from ARK Ola Pre IPO Fund. It had allotted 16,885 shares of Rs 10 each to the entity at a premium of Rs 21,240 apiece. Bengaluru-based Ola has been working on turning profitable as it plans to launch an IPO in the next few years.

(Disclaimer: Additional background information has been added to this PTI copy for context)

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