Chinese internet conglomerate Tencent is in talks to invest in Ola, ac, which if successful could result in an investment of $400 million providing the company with more cash to beat off the challenge from its rival Uber.

About Tencent

Tencent which has backed Flipkart, after the successful completion of a deal with Ola will make it one of the most influential investors in the Indian market, amounting a total investments of $1 billion.

Tencent has also backed other taxi app companies like China’s Didi Chuxing and US-based Lyft, besides Southeast Asian bike taxi firm Go-Jek.

Benefits gained

The entry of Tencent will also help Ola will release it from the influence of Softbank, which is reportedly in talks to invest in Uber. Ola after amending its AoA, now SoftBank also needs approval of Ola’s founders Bhavish Aggarwal and Ankit Bhati.

Other funds in row

Ola has raised $150 million this year from funds like Ratan Tata’s venture fund RNT Capital Advisors, US hedge fund Falcon Edge, and New York-based hedge fund Tekne Capital Management.

Ola’s gain to Uber’s loss

Uber has announced its exit from Russia having sold its business there to local player Yandex. Last year, Uber sold its business in China to Didi Chuxing. This has increased questions about whether Uber, which is world’s most valued startup.