Chalo in talks to acquire two-wheeler rental startup Vogo

Bengaluru: Chalo, an app that helps riders monitor buses throughout cities, is in superior talks to amass two-wheeler rental startup Vogo in a share-swap deal, a number of folks briefed on the matter stated.

The event follows
Chalo’s acquisition of Amazon-backed Shuttl, a bus service for workplace goers, final month and after the pandemic disrupted the mobility business within the nation.

Vogo, with the vast majority of its presence in cities like Hyderabad and Bengaluru, has been impacted by the pandemic too. “They’re within the last levels of closing the deal,” an individual conscious of the matter stated.

Final month, Chalo
raised $40 million in a funding spherical led by Lightrock India and Filter Capital. Vogo’s backers embody ride-hailing agency Ola, enterprise funds Stellaris Enterprise Companions and Matrix Companions India.

When contacted, Chalo cofounder Dhruv Chopra declined to touch upon the matter whereas Vogo founder Anand Ayyadurai didn’t instantly reply to messages despatched by ET.

In a current dialog with ET in September, Ayyadurai had stated its Hyderabad operations
had turned profitable and the corporate was aiming to do the identical in Bengaluru within the coming months. A 3rd of its operations was in Hyderabad with a fleet of 20,000.

Chalo powered 20 million bus rides in September, the corporate stated in a press assertion final month. It has round 15,000 buses stay on its platform and a presence in 31 cities throughout Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Assam, amongst different states. Moreover its acquisitions and investments in know-how, the startup additionally plans to increase internationally.