Ola Electric Founder Bhavish Aggarwal Set to Become Youngest Billionaires

Bhavish Aggarwal, the 38-year-old founder of Ola Electric, is on the verge of becoming one of the world’s youngest billionaires. His company’s public listing is set to increase his wealth by approximately $1.2 billion, bringing his total net worth to $2.3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Ola Electric’s Financial Performance:

Despite its rapid growth, Ola Electric has yet to achieve profitability. Founded in Bengaluru in 2017, the company reported a net loss of ₹14.7 billion in the financial year ending March 2023. Aggarwal remains optimistic, stating, “Three years ago, when we launched our product, I believe that’s when the EV story began.”

The Journey of Ola Electric:

Ola Electric quickly rose to unicorn status two years after its founding, thanks to early investments from SoftBank and Tiger Global Management. Aggarwal’s vision was to create the world’s leading “urban mobility EV company.” However, the company faced significant challenges, including a series of high-profile EV battery fires in 2021, which led to the recall of over 1,400 scooters.

Bhavish Aggarwal Wealth and Global Standing:

Even before the public listing, Aggarwal was featured on Bloomberg’s wealth index of the world’s top 500 billionaires. Remarkably, he was one of only seven billionaires under 40 worldwide on that list.

Aggarwal has been compared to Elon Musk, particularly for his bold statements and vision for the future of electric vehicles. He recently welcomed Tesla’s decision not to invest in India, tweeting, “This is Tesla’s loss, not India’s.” In an interview, he emphasized, “Tesla is for the West; Ola is for the rest.”

Challenges and Future Outlook:

Nitin Pangarkar, an associate professor of strategy and policy at the National University of Singapore, noted that while Aggarwal’s tech-led ventures generate valuable data across sectors, the attention required for each business could pose a challenge.