Ola ‘Sahyog’ brings interest-free micro-credit through Avail Finance to driver-partners to help them tide through ongoing liquidity crunch
- Pre-approved credit of upto INR 3600 to be disbursed over 3 weeks; offered interest-free to drivers operating auto-rickshaws, cabs, kaali-peelis and taxis on the Ola platform
- Aims to impact over 100,000 families who are in need of liquidity for immediate household expenses
National, 31st March 2020: Ola, India’s largest mobility platform, today announced the launch of ‘Sahyog’, an interest-free micro-credit which will help driver-partners and their families get instant access to instant cash in their bank accounts. This unique offering is tailor-made for Ola driver-partners and will help address immediate liquidity needs of over 100,000 families driver-partners and their families pan India. This move follows Ola’s multiple initiatives focussed on the well-being and economic upliftment of the driver community, who have been one of the worst-hit due to the Covid- 19 pandemic. This initiative is directly brought to eligible driver-partners by Ola and is separate from the ‘Drive the Driver’ fund by the Ola Foundation, which aims to impact the entire driver community across India, regardless of the platform they serve on.
The loan will aim to supplant the incomes of hundreds of thousands of driver-partners who haven’t had a steady source of income due to the ongoing Covid- 19 pandemic. All eligible driver-partners will be able to access loan amounts of up to INR 1200 per week, disbursed over the course of three weeks. Driver-partners can use the credit amount to pay for their planned household expenses or repayments. The credit shall be set off against earnings on the platform over a period upon return of normalcy in business. This micro-credit is available for all Ola driver-partners in India across all categories including Ola Auto, Ola Rentals and Outstation and will be distributed using microfinance lending platform, Avail Finance.
Speaking on the initiative, Anand Subramanian, Spokesperson and Head of Communications, Ola, said, “The financial well-being of our driver-partners and their families in these challenging times is of prime importance to us. There is an immediate need for access to instant cash to pay for household expenses which they are unable to foot, given the loss of income due to the ongoing lockdown. ‘Sahyog’ enables them to access micro-credit instantly, in their registered bank accounts, allowing drivers and their families to tide through these difficult times with much needed liquidity. We are committed to doing everything we can to reduce the economic burden and safeguard the interests of our driver-partners and their families through these unprecedented times.”
Ankush Aggarwal, Founder & CEO of Avail Finance said, “We are very happy to extend the Avail platform to deliver the ‘Sahyog’ micro-credit solution to Ola driver-partners. Avail’s platform will help Ola identify eligible driver-partners as well as to manage disbursement of credit in real-time. In these times of distress, instant credit to meet immediate day to day expenses will go a long way in helping hundreds of thousands of families tide through this phase.”
Ola has launched a series of initiatives to enhance the well-being of driver-partners and their families. Last week, Ola launched the ‘Drive the Driver’ fund under the aegis of Ola Foundation, to support auto-rickshaw, cab, kaali-peeli and taxi drivers, through contributions from the Ola group, investors and a crowdfunding platform for citizens and other institutions. Earlier, Ola also waived off the lease rentals, akin to an EMI, for driver-partners who operate vehicles owned by Ola’s subsidiary, Ola Fleet Technologies under its leasing program. As part of the ongoing efforts to help driver-partners across the country, Ola recently shared that it would cover loss of income for driver-partners and their spouses in case they test positive for COVID-19. The company has also been providing free medical support for driver-partners and their family members through free doctor consultations.
Notes to the editor:
‘Ola Sahyog’ is directly brought to eligible driver-partners by Ola and is separate from the ‘Drive the Driver’ fund by the Ola Foundation, which aims to impact the entire driver community across India, regardless of the platform they serve on.
Distinction between ‘Ola Sahyog’ and ‘Driver the Driver’ fund
| Ola Sahyog – For Ola drivers | Drive the Driver Fund – For all drivers |
| ‘Ola Sahyog’ is an interest-free, micro-credit offering launched by Ola, specifically for Ola driver-partners, aimed to help drivers for household expenses | ‘Drive the Driver’ fund is a community initiative by Ola Foundation, the social welfare arm of Ola, directed towards providing essential supplies and critical medical support to the Auto, Taxi and Cab driver community and their families, including those not on the Ola platform. |
| This credit shall be set off against the drivers’ earnings on the platform over a period upon return of normalcy in business | The proceeds of the fund will be deployed towards the above specific initiatives to benefit drivers and their families, through a network of partner organisations. Contributions raised through the fund will not be distributed as cash or credit in any form. |
About Ola
Ola is India’s largest mobility platform and one of the world’s largest ride-hailing companies, serving 250+ cities across India, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. The Ola app offers mobility solutions by connecting customers to drivers and a wide range of vehicles across bikes, auto-rickshaws, metered taxis, and cabs, enabling convenience and transparency for hundreds of millions of consumers and over 2 million driver-partners.
Ola’s core mobility offering in India is supplemented by its electric-vehicle arm, Ola Electric; India’s largest fleet management business, Ola Fleet Technologies and Ola Skilling that aims to enable millions of livelihood opportunities for India’s youth. With its acquisition of Ridlr, India’s leading public transportation app and investment in Vogo, a dockless scooter sharing solution, Ola is looking to build mobility for the next billion Indians. Ola also extends its consumer offerings like micro-insurance and credit led payments through Ola Financial Services and a range of owned food brands through India’s largest network of kitchens under its Food business.
Ola was founded in 2011 by Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati with a mission to build mobility for a billion people. For more details, visit www.olacabs.com/media
About Avail
Founded in 2017 by Ankush Aggarwal and Tushar Mehndiratta, Avail Finance is a fintech company, focused on the blue-collar segment. Avail has multiple products that are customized to this segment – Personal Loans, Salary Advances, Savings etc. helping its users to be financially included and independent. Using machine learning and AI, Avail creates a unique analysis in the backend which helps in achieving what the team truly believes in – access to financial products, irrespective of income, geography, age, gender or ability to furnish documents. The company is backed by Matrix Partners, and prominent entrepreneurs like Binny Bansal, Co-founder of Flipkart, Kunal Shah, Founder of Cred, Manish Patel, founder and CEO of Mswipe amongst others.
To know more, visit: http://availfinance.in
To know more on the product, visit: https://availfinance.in/covid19/