Uber looking at leaving India? Tweet from Ola chief Bhavis Agrawal hints at it
India Today
The Uber spokesperson also categorically denied new reports and said, "We are not, nor have been, in merger talks with Ola".
Ola CEO Bhavish Aggarwal recently responded to a news report claiming a possible Uber-Ola merger. In a tweet, the senior executive called the report "absolute rubbish" and indicated that Ola is "profitable and growing". However, the tweet even revived speculation about Uber considering leaving India as it reads, "If some other companies want to exit their business from India they are welcome to". India Today Tech reached out to Uber to learn whether rumours about the Ola-Uber merger are accurate. The company also affirmed its commitment to the Indian cab market by referring to Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi's old tweet.
The Uber spokesperson categorically denied the latest ET report, echoing Aggarwal's response in his tweet. The spokesperson simply said, "We are not, nor have been, in merger talks with Ola."
When enquired if Uber is planning to exit India, the company spokesperson shared a link to Uber CEO Khosrowshahi's old tweet, which was posted in reply to Bloomberg's initial reporting. The tweet reads, "Amazing that they [Bloomberg] ran this story - there is zero truth to this story - wasn't explored, wasn't considered, discussions didn't happen, at any level - and we told Bloomberg as such. Total clickbait (or sub-bait in this case).
In June 2022, Bloomberg reported that both Ola and Uber are struggling to "eke out" a profit in a rapidly growing but price-sensitive India. The report had suggested that the US-based cab aggregator might exit the market, but keep an equity stake in the dominant local player to tap future growth. Uber struck similar deals in China (with Didi Global) and Southeast Asia (with Grab Holdings).
The latest ET report notes that Ola CEO Aggarwal travelled to San Francisco, US to meet top Uber executives. The report claimed that both held talks four years ago when common investor SoftBank had pushed for a merger. The report added that those conversations have seemingly "revived in recent months as both Uber and Ola are facing growth pangs". As mentioned, Ola has also denied the report.
