India’s biggest ride-hailing platform Ola Cabs run by ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd has received approval from London’s transport regulator to start running private hire vehicles (PHV) in the United Kingdom’s capital city.
Ola UK said in an official statement that it has received a one-year carriage licence from Transport For London (TFL) where drivers themselves are required to apply for a licence and list their vehicle as a privately registered vehicle for hire.
“London is one of the world’s most iconic cities and hosts a progressive mobility environment. We couldn’t be more excited to bring Ola to London in the time ahead," a company spokesman stated.
The ridesharing firm is set to compete with Uber and Daimler AG-backed Bolt, which received a licence from TFL in June. Bolt, which was formerly known as Taxify, recently re-entered the UK.
“We believe Ola is arguably a greater threat if media reports of Ola’s entry into London at the end of the year prove accurate," Morgan Stanley analysts said in a market report.
Ola counts SoftBank Corp., Sequoia Capital, Accel, and automakers like Kia Motors and Hyundai as its investors.
The Bengaluru-headquartered firm launched in the UK in 2018 and has been expanding since, operating across Liverpool, Reading, South Wales, South West England and the West Midlands. It also started services in Australia in February this year and has taken 40,000 drivers on board since, according to the company.
