Ola’s EV arm ropes in former General Motors executive as a board member

Bengaluru-based Ola Electric Mobility has appointed Jaime Ardila as a member of the company’s board of directors.

Ardila currently serves as the chairman of the board for the American investment firm Goldman Sachs BDC. 

He also serves as a board member at IT services company Accenture and Brazil-based mining conglomerate Nexa Resources, according to a statement. 

The London School of Economics (LSE)-alumnus is also the co-founder of management consulting firm Hawksbill Group.

Ardila has held various leadership roles across the globe in his 30-year stint at Detroit-headquartered automobile giant General Motors.

Prior to joining the board of directors at the electric mobility startup, Ardila held the position of president of South America operations at General Motors. 

In his previous role, he was responsible for the automobile company’s operations in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela.

“... Mobility is going through a digital transformation as we build solutions to improve air quality, make clean energy more accessible and reduce fossil dependence. Our ambition and capabilities of fostering the adoption of electric mobility at scale will have a deep impact on the mobility landscape in India and beyond,” said Ardila, according to the statement.

In April 2018, Ola Electric Mobility was hived off as a separate entity by ANI Technologies, the holding company of ride-hailing major Ola.

The company deploys a charging and battery-swapping ecosystem for the commercial electric vehicle (EV) segment. 

Ola Electric Mobility is working on deploying EVs, including two-wheeler and three-wheeler services.

It has also partnered with original equipment manufacturers and battery makers in its efforts to create solutions to facilitate electric vehicle operations.

In September 2019, South Korean automotive major Hyundai and its sister company Kia Motors were seeking the approval of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to invest in Ola Electric Mobility.

Earlier this year, Ola Electric Mobility raised $250 million from Japanese conglomerate SoftBank. With the funding by SoftBank, the company’s valuation reportedly rose to around $960 million. 

Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of Tata Sons, has invested an undisclosed amount in Ola Electric. The tranche of funding was a part of the company’s Series A round. 

In March 2019, the company raised around $56 million from New York-based hedge fund Tiger Global Management and venture capital firm Matrix Partners India.