US investment firm Vanguard cuts Ola's valuation further to $3.5 billion

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

Vanguard Group have cut the value of their holdings in ANI Technologies, the parent firm of ride-hailing startup Ola, to $3.5 billion – down over 50% from a peak of $7.3 billion – regulatory filings made by the investor with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday showed. The latest filing reflected Ola’s valuation as of May 31 in the investor’s books.

Crossover funds, which invest both in publicly-traded and privately-held companies, periodically review the valuation of their portfolio companies. The valuation cut comes at a time when a number of headline investors in multiple Indian startups have done the same, amid a global rout across public and private technology markets.

Recently, Netherlands-based tech investor Prosus slashed its valuation of beleaguered edtech firm Byju’s to about $5.1 billion from the $22 billion it last raised equity funding at, while US asset manager Invesco cut the valuation of food delivery major Swiggy to $5.5 billion from $8.2 billion in May. Vanguard’s International Growth Fund now values its holding in Ola at $25.0 million, down from the $33.8 million valuation it assigned to its holding in its half-yearly report in May this year, and much lower than the about $50 million Vanguard assigned the stake in 2019.

This indicates a valuation of about $3.5 billion for the entire firm, down from $4.8 billion indicated by the investor’s report that reflected Ola’s valuation as of February 28. The mobility company last raised $139 million in December 2021 as part of a funding round, led by Edelweiss Private Equity.

The International Growth Fund holds 1,66,185 shares in the firm. Another Vanguard fund, the Variable Insurance Fund, also holds about 19,000 shares in Ola, taking