Shared mobility EV startup Yulu Bikes has announced that it has raised $82 million (Rs 653 crore) in Series B funding, paving the way to hiring new leadership and forming a new entity Yulu Energy for expansion purposes.

The funding round was led by Magna International, with whom Yulu will form the new entity.

Matteo Del Sorbo, Executive Vice President, Magna International, and Global Lead of Magna New Mobility said, “This is an incredibly exciting time for Magna to contribute to a sustainable future in urban mobility through this investment in Yulu. Micro mobility presents a great opportunity for additional growth for Magna and joining forces with Yulu helps us expand our business into this rapidly growing sector.”

The latest funding will be utilised to hire industry leaders to kick-start product and technology innovation. The Bengaluru-based startup will also be focused on increasing its ever-growing electronic vehicle (EV) fleet to more than 1L EV two-wheelers and charging stations by 2023. 

Along with the partnership with Magna, Yulu will form a new entity by the name of 'Yulu Energy' with the aim to create nationwide battery charging and swapping infrastructure to cater to the demands of vehicles. 

Amit Gupta, Co-founder & CEO, Yulu Bikes Pvt Ltd, said, “We can clearly see a 100X growth opportunity for Yulu in both the BaaS (Battery as a Service) and MaaS (Mobility as a Service) businesses in the next three-four years. As the market leader in electric mobility, with a proven business model built on positive unit economics, our focus now will be to establish a robust and agile supply chain and scale up our operations."

He also added that the company will go deeper and denser in the existing markets and explore new areas while delivering a great customer experience and welcome Magna onboard with the company's shared vision to create a sustainable and scalable EV ecosystem in India and beyond."