Chalo, an app that helps in tracking buses in cities, has acquired shuttle, one installment bus service For The Office going to an all-cash dealA senior company official said.

Backed by Hong Kong-based venture capital firm SIG Investments, Amazon, Dentsu, Trifecta Capital, Sequoia Capital, Lightspeed India Partners, and Times Internet*, Shuttl could not escape the relentless waves of the pandemic that confined people to their homes.

Sources privy to the developments said that all the investors have exited the company with huge cuts. In total, since its inception in 2015, Shuttl has raised approximately $120 million in equity capital from investors.

For ChaloMILF armed with a
$40 million Series C funding round Led by Lightrock India and Filter Capital earlier this month, Shuttle offers an opportunity to enter the premium bus services segment and expand overseas, Chalo co-founder and CEO Mohit Dubey told ET.

Before Covid-19, Shuttle had a presence in major Indian metros like Delhi NCR, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune and Mumbai, and international cities like Bangkok, and was completing around 100,000 rides daily through its 2,000 buses.

“We have a strong synergy in our values ​​and vision. Chalo and Shuttle were already the biggest brands in their field. Together we now cater to over 25 million rides per month, and aim for further growth in India as well as international expansion,” said Dubey.

“We started taking the pain away from the daily commuters. In the process, we created a category, and inspired others from different parts of the world to do the same. This is a bitter moment for us. We are confident that Shuttle’s team and legacy will grow equally well in the new set-up,” said Amit Singh, Co-Founder and CEO, Shuttle.

The premium office bus service will continue to use the ‘Shuttle’ brand name. “All of Shuttle’s current team, including key people who have been part of Shuttle’s core team since its inception, will continue in their current roles,” Dubey said.

15,000 buses ply on Chalo’s platform. Combined, Chalo and Shuttle have a presence in 33 cities across 12 Indian states including Delhi NCR, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Assam and others.

Founded in 2014 by Mohit Dubey, Priya Singh Dubey, Dhruv Chopra, Vinayak Bhavnani, Chalo had over 70 lakh downloads as of July 2021. Chalo also offers products such as mobile tickets and mobile bus passes which can also be purchased on the Chalo app. Like let’s go through the cards. Let’s partner with bus operators to implement this technology and improve the bus travel experience.

*Times Internet is part of The Times of India Group which also publishes this paper.