The Silicon Review ^Asia

Flipkart’s new investment will boost cab services company, Ola. The e-commerce site’s co-founder, Sachin Bansal has pumped Rs. 650 crore for assisting Ola to compete with their rival Uber.

According to Ola, the new move by Mr. Bansal will mark the largest financing by an individual in Ola to date. The ride-hailing company gave shares worth Rs.150 crore to Mr. Bansal in January this year. The shares are a part of series J fundings.

The new investment is part of Ola’s $1B funding plan. Last year, the company unveiled about raising funds worth $1.1B from SoftBank Group and Tencent Holdings.

Mr. Bansal stated that Ola is one of the most promising consumer businesses in India that is developing a valuable impact and lasting value for the ecosystem. Since Mr. Bansal Left Walmart, it picked up stakes about 77% in Flipkart for $16B.

The company is in further talks to boost up the funding round to an additional $1B which could make the total funding to $2B.

According to Bhavish Agarwal, Co-founder of Ola, the company is excited to have Flipkart’s founder as an investor. He is an icon of entrepreneurship and his experience of building one of India's most respected businesses ground up, is unparalleled.

The ride-hailing company has locked horns with Uber in India for marketplace leadership. The company has been ramping up its business along with its food delivery operation through Foodpanda.