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New Delhi: Almost a week after the resignation of the Vice-Chairman of the Hinduja Group-backed Switch Mobility, the president and chief planning officer, Sarwant Singh, has also quit the company after a short stint of 18 months. Singh, a former managing partner of the consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, had joined Switch Mobility in May 2021.
So what’s brewing? Has the electric vehicle business hit a bump after cruising at jet speed? This is what it looks like from the investors’ perspective. ETAuto recently reported that the top 5 new-age EV makers lost close to USD 800 billion in valuation.
In recent months investors have become more cautious about investments in EV companies. One such company is Ashok Leyland’s Switch Mobility which had originally planned to close a fund-raise of over USD 200 million for its expansion over the next 2-3 years. However, this has been delayed. So far, the company has bagged only a fraction of the target fund, USD 16 million, from DANA; too small to realise the ambitious plans of the company.
The reluctance of investors is also owing to excessive exposure of the company to the economically struggling European and the UK markets.
Recently, Andy Palmer resigned from Switch Mobility, and the Ashok Leyland Board. The global industry veteran was appointed to the Ashok Leyland Board as a non-executive member in 2015. He had taken up the role of Switch Mobility’s vice-chairman and CEO in July 2021. According to the company, Palmer requested to step down due to personal reasons.
Switch Mobility, elevated Mahesh Babu to take over the role from Andy Palmer. Babu had joined the company in September last year as its global COO and India CEO. An email seeking response remained unanswered by the company’s UK office.
The Hinduja Group, the parent company, is already facing a family feud. The members of Britain’s richest family oversaw the century-old Anglo-Indian business empire from their shared family homes in London, Mumbai and Geneva. But, with the ailing patriarch Srichand, known as SP, suffering from dementia, disputes have splintered the family.
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The global industry veteran was appointed to the Ashok Leyland Board as a non-executive member in 2015. He had taken up the role of Switch Mobility’s vice-chairman and CEO in July 2021.
It’s all in a muddle. Tesla alone has lost a market cap of USD 519 billion. It is more than that of the other 4 in the top five list. Ironically, in revenue Tesla doesn’t even feature among the top 10 EV players. Most of the new-age EV makers are facing a similar trend. But the traditional automakers with their articulated EV plans have instilled better trust among the investors. Is the gold rush of EV companies drawing to an end, or is it time to establish realistic valuations?