Ola appoints Mike Rake as non-executive chairman and Leon Daniels as non-executive director to the UK board

Ride-hailing platform Ola on Thursday said it has appointed Mike Rake as non-executive Chairman and Leon Daniels as an independent non-executive director to the Ola UK Board. Rake and Daniels will draw on deep experience across the private and public sectors to provide the strongest possible oversight, corporate governance, and strategic counsel to Ola as it continues to grow and scale, Ola said in a statement.

They will join Balasubrahmanyam Vijay Juturi, alongside Marc Rozendal (Managing Director, Ola UK) and Karl Lutzow (Operations Director, Ola UK) on the board, it added.

"We are delighted to welcome Sir Mike and Leon to the Ola UK Board. As a scaled, global business with a major presence in the UK, the appointment of such high-quality independent board members underlines our commitment to the UK and the scale of our ambition in this dynamic market," Bhavish Aggarwal, Chairman and Group CEO at Ola, said.

Ola had launched operations in the UK in 2018. Currently, Ola operates across 27 local authorities, including Birmingham, Liverpool and Bristol.

It has also expanded its offering for UK riders, including the launch of Ola Corporate.

Sir Mike Rake is one of the UK's leading business figures. He joins Ola having previously served in a range of senior boardroom roles, including as Chairman of Worldpay Group plc (2015-2018), BT Group plc (2007-2017), EasyJet plc (2010-2013) and International Chairman of KPMG (2002-2007), along with serving as President of the Confederation of British Industry (2013-2015).

"The application of technology to mobility holds out an exciting future of cleaner, safer and more efficient transportation for millions of UK passengers, and I look forward to helping Ola continue to do what they do best - innovate for the benefit of society," Rake said.

Leon Daniels served as Managing Director, Surface Transport at Transport for London until 2017 and previously held the position of Commercial Director at UK Bus, overseeing new ventures in the UK and international transport.

In 2019, he was awarded an OBE for Services to Transport in recognition of his expertise and experience across the UK, Europe, and Asia.


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