This approach received a $4 billion valuation in its initial public offering (IPO) last August. Things quickly fell.
Even though BSE Sensex rose 3% during this period, its stock value nearly halved. The unstoppable stocks are just one of many troubles with Aggarwal, Ola Electric and his other big company taxi. Earlier this month, an investor in the OLA taxi business valued the private company at $1.25 billion, down 83% from the $7.3 billion mass in 2021.
Today, Ola Electric is Aggarwal’s main business, and it faces multiple challenges. According to Vahan Data, it ceded its leadership to Bajaj in two of the first four months of the 2025 calendar. TV also narrowed the gap. A report from ICRA this month pointed out that the total share of Bajaj and TVS is 40%, compared to just 7% in 2021-22.
Ola Electric uses its digital platform to directly utilize its initial customers in India. TVS and Bajaj use traditional showroom routes, leveraging their existing networks. Ola pressed the pedal on its physical distribution network, expanding it from 870 in March 2024 to 4,000 in December 2024.
The trouble of margin
Ola Electric has not made a profit yet. In the first nine months of 2024-25, its operating margin was (-)26.7%, while (-) age was (-)22.7%. On average, it’s lost ₹In the past seven quarters, one quarter of the quarter. In the latest December quarter, it posted a net loss ₹Revenue fell by 5.64 million and revenue fell by 19% due to low sales.
According to ICRA, this has resulted in a cash burn period exceeding expectations and extended its profitability. It warned that Ora may have to raise funds within the next 12-24 months. A lot depends on monthly sales. Aggarwal said in a third-quarter earnings call that monthly sales were about 50,000. “Now, when we get there, it depends on the market conditions and the penetration of electric vehicles,” he said.
Please read also: ICRA reduces OLA electrical technology to sales downturn
Internal Challenge
While Aggarwal poses sales growth a broader market problem, Ola Electric itself faces operational, regulatory and reputation challenges. In terms of operation, it has been working hard to deal with product quality and after-sales service issues. In October last year, after receiving more than 10,000 customer complaints since 2023, the Central Consumer Protection Bureau issued a notice of the reason.
In January, capital market regulators warned the OLA to announce plans for expansion on social media before notifying the stock exchange. Even more frustrating, Ora said, it sold 25,000 cars in February, while Vahan’s registration showed about 8,600.
Ola often has headlines for mistakes, which weakens customer trust. Outside of the IPO, interest in OLA was the highest in October 2024 after comedian Kunal Kamra slammed the company for its quality of service, according to Google Trends. It collided again in November for mixed reasons – Ola fired 500 employees that month and in ₹39,000.
The overall situation
Ola expects mass market products such as Ola Gig will help it gain market share, while premium products can increase profit margins. Aggarwal said in the latest earnings call that the extensive product range from entry-level gig models to premium scooters and sports car motorcycles is one of three pillars of the company’s strategy. However, the increase in quality models has been offset by the decline in advanced models over the past two quarters.
The other two pillars identified by OLA are strengthening its distribution network and doing more internally, including cell manufacturing plants and software work. However, investors are concerned about Ora’s ability to achieve this.
Meanwhile, when Maharashtra ordered local authorities to close 121 OLA stores last month, Ola faced another round of reputation losses as they operated without a trade certificate. Can Ola keep it on its own mapped path?
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