Common shareholder SoftBank calls for merger between Uber, Ola in India

Japanese investor is the largest shareholder in both companies

Japanese investment giant SoftBank has called for a merger between homegrown Ola and US firm Uber’s India unit as part of its planned consolidation in Asia’s fast-growing ride hailing app market.

The talks, facilitated by SoftBank, which is the largest investor in both companies, have been going on for nearly a year, according to sources close to the development. However, in the past few days, this call for a merger between Uber and Ola has gathered steam.

Softbank’s push for consolidation in India’s ride hailing market comes days after Uber announced its exit from Southeast Asia after selling