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Ola to consolidate brand IPs to streamline governance, rejig structure
The move is aimed at eliminating intra-group cross-holdings and simplifying internal ownership structures, according to people familiar with the matter.
The move follows Ola Electric's public listing last year and will be carried out through a newly formed entity under the control of the founder's family office.
Ola's operations currently span mobility, electric vehicles, energy, and artificial intelligence, positioning it as India's only well-diversified technology conglomerate with businesses cutting across key sectors of the new economy.
ANI Technologies, which operates the group's ride-hailing business, holds the brand IP and has licensed it to electric vehicle manufacturer Ola Electric.
The move has triggered concerns among some investors who worry that they could be cut out of future royalty earnings from use of the brand if it is transferred out of ANI Technologies.
Ola Electric Mobility Ltd in a Monday evening stock exchange filing stated that "pursuant to the Business Transfer Agreement dated January 18, 2019, entered into between the company and ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd, the company holds a perpetual, royalty-free, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-assignable, and revocable license to use certain licensed intellectual property, including the logo and/or word-mark of 'Ola'." This license, it said, is granted exclusively in relation to the company's electric vehicle business and is valid globally.
Some of the prominent investors in the company too did not see any material impact of such a move.
"Founders start companies before investors invest so the brand is logically with the founders," one of the prominent investors in the company said on condition of anonymity.
Stating that market precedents in India and globally have to be looked at before forming a view, he said, "In India, most industrialists own the brand in their own names and even globally big brands are owned and licensed through a corporate structure." "Look at some of the Western big techs, or for that matter, some of the well-known Indian brands. I don't see any material impact of such a move (as being done by Ola Group). Anyway, the company has said no royalty is being paid so I am not sure what the issue is," he added.
Ola Group is looking to realign the group structure to unlock greater value and operational agility.
The brand IPs are currently housed within ANI Technologies, the original Ola company established over 15 years ago. ANI held a stake in the then-nascent Ola Electric in exchange for using the brand for electric vehicle manufacturing and sales. The result was a layered intra-group ownership structure.
With the new holding structure, the company seeks to establish a single point of authority for IP governance, sources said, adding that the objective is to create a cleaner, more transparent framework that reduces internal dependencies and potential conflicts of interest.
Moving the brand IP into an apex entity is also expected to prevent its dilution and mismanagment over time as the group diversifies into new categories.
The structure mirrors similar approaches taken by large Indian family offices such as Adani and JSW, where brand ownership and IPs are retained at the top level and controlled by family trusts to ensure alignment across operating companies.
According to the people cited above, such models are increasingly common among conglomerates managing diversified business interests with strong brand recognition.
The move is part of a broader strategy to future-proof governance and asset control as the group continues to scale its presence across multiple sectors.
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