A month after starting international operations at Perth, Australia, Indian online cab aggregator Ola on Monday said it has begun offering rides in Sydney through its local driver-partners. The company began offering two free rides for customers at Perth on February 14.

"People of Sydney can avail the introductory offer for free rides. Customers can download the Ola app, register for an account and book their rides," the Bengaluru-based ride-sharing platform said in a statement.

On January 30, the company announced that it was driving into Australia. Ola also stated they would hire private vehicles and drivers in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth in the next fortnight.

Sydney and Melbourne are two of the most populated cities in the country.

Since it began its operations in Australia, the company has received over 7,000 driver registrations in Sydney and Perth, the statement said.

The company is yet to begin operating in Melbourne.

Ola will be taking on Uber, the largest ride-hailing platform in Australia, apart from other online cab aggregators operating in the country like Australia's GoCatch and Estonian Taxify.

Ola has been competing against Uber in the Indian ride-sharing market since its foundation in 2011.

The seven-year-old Ola claims to have close to 125 million users in 110 cities across India.

In October 2017, Ola raised $1.1 billion through investors like SoftBank, Tencent Holdings Ltd, a leading Chinese internet firm, and other US-based financial investors.

SoftBank is also the largest shareholder in Uber, after the Japanese telecom firm recently bought 15% of its stake.