The deal which has been expected to value Ola at $6-7 billion, would include a secondary sale of shares by a slew of investors
Homebased cab hailing service firm Ola is in initial talks with Singapore based Temasek and other investors to add $500 million-$1 billion to its profile, according to an Economic Times report.
Citing people close to the development, the report stated that the deal which has been expected to value Ola at $6-7 billion, would include a secondary sale of shares by a slew of investors.
If all goes well, this would be the first major liquidity deal for Ola that would help to fight the tough competition with US based Uber.
The selling shareholders include angel investor Rehan Yar Khan and the investors who got stocks in Ola after its acquisition of Taxiforsure in 2015, the report stated.
Negotiations for the secondary transaction are being held in parallel with the talks for the primary stake, and both the deals are likely to be done together so the incoming investor would gain a sizable stake in the company, the publication stated citing sources.
Last month, Ola had announced its plans to make a foray into the Australian market.
"Ola, one of the world's largest ride-sharing platforms, is now available on a limited basis to customers in Perth," Ola said in a statement.
As part of the soft launch offer, Perth-based customers will be given their first two rides free up to the value of AUD 10 per ride, it added.
Earlier this year, Bengaluru-based ride hailing app Ola announced plans to enter its first international market. In Australia, Ola would again be competing with its arch rival Uber.
Uber and Ola are fighting for the market share in India. Uber had launched its operations in Australia in 2012 and currently operates in 19 Australian cities including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Canberra.
As part of its international expansion, Ola has begun onboarding private hire vehicles and driver-partners onto its platform in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, according to a company statement released on Tuesday. The company has invited them to learn more about driving and registering with Ola.
The company aims to create a high-quality and affordable travel experience for citizens with a strong focus on driver-partners and the community at large.
Founded in 2011, Ola has over 125 million users and more than one million driver-partners across 110 cities on its platform in India. On an aggregate basis, Ola serves as many as a billion rides annually, through its platform.
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 "Ola in intial talks with Singapore firm to add up to $1 billion to its kitty")
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