Ola Electric brings Arun Sarin on its Board as an Independent Director
As an Investor and Independent Director, Arun will be a mentor and advisor to Ola Electric in its overall business strategy
Bengaluru, May 28, 2019: Ola Electric Mobility Pvt Ltd (Ola Electric) today announced that it has appointed Arun Sarin, former CEO of Vodafone Group Plc, as an Independent Director on its board. Arun is a veteran in the telecom space and a globally respected business leader. He serves on the boards of Cisco Systems, Accenture, Charles Schwab and Ola’s parent company, ANI Technologies. He received an Honorary Knighthood from Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace in 2010.
Speaking on his appointment to Ola Electric’s board, Arun Sarin said, “I am delighted to be joining the board of Ola Electric. Electric Mobility at scale is the need of the hour and can help us solve some of the world’s most complex problems like climate change, pollution, over-dependence on non-renewables amongst others.”
“Ola Electric is pioneering the change by building an ecosystem that can help catalyze the adoption of electric vehicles globally. I look forward to working with Bhavish and the team at Ola Electric, towards their bold vision for the future of mobility,” he added.
Bhavish Aggarwal, Co-founder & CEO, Ola said, “I am very excited to welcome Arun on the board of Ola Electric. Over the years, his guidance and support have helped Ola grow as an organization with a global perspective.”
He added, “Ola Electric aims to build an ecosystem that can accelerate the adoption of electric mobility in India and across the world. Arun’s experience of building global businesses and his deep understanding of emerging markets and opportunities will be very valuable for us at Ola Electric in executing towards our mission. We look forward to his continued guidance and mentorship.”
About Arun Sarin: Arun Sarin is the former CEO of Vodafone Group Plc. He graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur and subsequently earned an MS in Engineering and an MBA from the University of California at Berkeley. As CEO of Vodafone Group Plc, he was the driving force behind expansion into emerging markets like, India, Turkey and Africa, grew the data and internet businesses globally, produced record revenues and profits with a market capitalization of over $150 billion.
Arun began his career with Pacific Telesis Group and held a series of senior management positions. He was later appointed President of AirTouch Communications, following the company’s demerger from the Group. He was a key negotiator in the successful acquisition of AirTouch by Vodafone Group Plc.
He has served on numerous other Boards including The Gap, Safeway and the Court of the Bank of England. Arun also served as a Senior Advisor to KKR, a global private equity group. He has received numerous awards, including being named Global Indian of the Year in 2007 by CNN/IBN.
About Ola Electric:
Ola Electric Mobility Pvt Ltd develops solutions to make Electric Mobility viable at scale, enabling more clean kilometres on Indian roads. Ola Electric is backed by several global investors including Ola, India’s leading mobile platform and one of the world’s largest ride-hailing companies. For more details, please visit www.olaelectric.in. For media queries, please write to press@olaelectric.in.