Brands
Maruti Suzuki, Ola tie up to train drivers
MUMBAI: Maruti Suzuki India has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Ola to train aspiring drivers-partners. Under the ‘Maruti Ola Training Program,’ the company aims at benefiting 40,000 Ola partner-drivers in safe driving, over a period of three years.
Maruti Suzuki and Ola partnership will create entrepreneurship opportunities for aspiring drivers¬ partners as well as make urban transportation safe, reliable and convenient. The pilot phase of the initiative will be rolled out in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and in NCR. The driving training programme will be gradually rolled out in Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Pune.
Ola, as a technology platform will help create opportunities for these trained drivers by giving them access to infrastructure, financing and continuous revenue. Over the last 5 years, Ola has been successful in on-boarding over 5 lakh skilled driver-partners onto its platform.
Maruti Suzuki marketing and sales executive director R S Kalsi said, “Maruti Suzuki is committed to promote quality driving training in the country. Studies show that driver’s fault’ is the biggest reason of road accidents. We have evolved a comprehensive training program comprising simulators, theory and practical sessions, imparted through 370 Maruti Driving Schools and six IDTRs across India. The curriculum, besides driving skills, offers soft skills like grooming, manners, etiquette that develop a positive attitude among the drivers. We are glad that through this partnership with Ola, we will be able to expand quality driving training while creating opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship. We target to train 40,000 individuals over three years.”
Ola COO Pranay Jivrajka said, “Mobility in India is a huge need and the industry has the potential to empower aspiring individuals from all walks of life to become micro-entrepreneurs. This partnership falls in line with Ola’s goal of skilling five million drivers in the next five years and continue to build a conducive ecosystem for them to grow as entrepreneurs. We are delighted to work with a trusted Indian brand like Maruti to create a unique solution to skill tens of thousands of aspiring driver entrepreneurs realize their dreams. This is yet another initiative from Ola towards creating a robust and balanced driver ecosystem; which is vital to realize our mission of creating mobility for a billion Indians.”
According to the MoU, Maruti Suzuki would help the individuals/Ola partner-drivers obtain commercial license and also assist in availing vehicle financing to purchase their own car, after the completion of their course. Ola will also provide qualified leads of potential driver-partners to Maruti Suzuki for facilitating them with commercial driving training.
All the aspiring drivers will undergo a 30-day driving training which includes a pre- and post- assessment tests to gauge the driving skills of these individuals.
The classroom sessions will familiarize the trainee with basic requirements such as vehicle controls and mechanisms, road signage, rules and markings, driving in difficult conditions, maintenance and fuel efficiency tips and traffic laws. Besides these dedicated sessions on soft skills like being a good road user, interactive case studies on the effect of bad driving habits, the importance of positive attitude, grooming tips, etiquette and good manners are imparted to instill safe driving habits and become a responsible driver.
The practical training sessions cover intensive training on safe and efficient driving, pre-checks before starting to drive, risk perception, defensive driving techniques, driving in difficult conditions, rules of the road and emergency handling.
Ola works closely with multiple state governments to create a skilled workforce that has access to capital, insurance and vehicle at discounted prices. Ola aims to add 50 lakh driver-partners on its platform by 2022 by mobilising, training and engaging with aspirants through such partnerships.
Brands
UK’s OnlyFans seeks US investor at $3bn valuation after owner’s death
The adult video platform is seeking stability after the death of its billionaire owner
LONDON: OnlyFans is looking for a new partner. The London-based adult video platform is in advanced talks to sell a minority stake of less than 20 per cent to Architect Capital, a San Francisco-based investment firm, in a deal that would value the business at more than $3bn (£2.2bn).
The move is driven by an urgent need for stability. Leonid Radvinsky, the Ukrainian-American billionaire who owned OnlyFans, died of cancer last month at the age of 43, leaving the future of one of Britain’s most profitable privately held businesses suddenly uncertain.
The choice of Architect Capital is not arbitrary. The firm has deep expertise in financial services, which aligns neatly with OnlyFans’ ambitions to offer banking products to its creators, many of whom have long struggled to access basic financial services because of the nature of their work.
The numbers behind OnlyFans are, by any measure, staggering. The platform posted revenues of $1.4bn in the year to 30th November 2024, with a pre-tax profit of $684m, up four per cent on the prior year. Payments to creators totalled $7.2bn over the same period, a rise of nearly ten per cent. Radvinsky personally collected $701m in dividends from the business in 2024 alone, on top of more than $1bn in such payments he had already received. The platform, run through its parent company Felix International, hosts 4.6m creator accounts, with performers keeping 80 per cent of subscription proceeds and the platform pocketing the remaining 20 per cent. It has 377m fan accounts in total.
The current minority stake talks represent a notable scaling back of ambitions. In January, OnlyFans was reported to be in discussions with Architect about selling a majority stake of 60 per cent. Before that, the company had explored a sale to a consortium led by Forest Road Company, a Los Angeles-based investment firm. Neither deal materialised.
OnlyFans has built an enormously lucrative business on content that mainstream finance has long refused to touch. Now, with its owner gone and a $3bn valuation on the table, it is looking for the kind of respectable institutional backing that might finally persuade the banks to take its calls.
