General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - September 2016

Sep 2016

Apr 26, 2023

IndusInd Bank to Launch Digital Bank 'Indie'

The Mumbai-headquartered IndusInd bank is planning to launch its own digital bank 'Indie' by this quarter. The necessary approvals for all these expansion plans and other logistics by the bank is likely to be completed in about 2 years.
Private sector lender IndusInd Bank on April 24 reported a 46 per cent jump in its March quarter net profit at Rs 2,043 crore on a dip in provisions and stronger core income.
The bank's core net interest income rose 17 per cent to Rs 4,669 crore on a 21 per cent loan growth and a 0.08 per cent expansion in the net interest margin to 4.28 per cent.
Its other income came at Rs 2,154 crore, up by 13 per cent when compared to the year-ago period.

Anant Maheshwari New Chairperson of NASSCOM

NASSCOM, which represents India's IT services sector, announced Anant Maheshwari, Microsoft India's president, its new chairperson for 2023-24.
Maheshwari succeeded Krishnan Ramanujam, president for business & technology services Tata Consultancy Services, who served as chairperson in 2022-23. Maheshwari was previously chairperson of the trade body.
Nasscom, short for National Association of Software and Services Companies, also announced the appointment of Rajesh Nambiar, chairman and MD of Cognizant India, as its vice chairperson for 2023-24.

Indiahandmade: E-com portal launched for sale of handlooms, handicrafts by weavers, artisans

To provide products from more than 35 lakh handloom weavers and 27 lakh handicraft artisans directly to the consumers while eliminating the middlemen, the Ministry of Textiles has developed an e-commerce portal for handicrafts and handloom sector. The Union Minister of Textiles Piyush Goyal launched the portal in Gujarat.
With the help of this virtual Indian store, the artisans will get remunerated fairly with no middlemen to manipulate prices and city dwelling urban Indians will get access to 100 percent authentic and best handcrafts products emerging straight from the heart of India.

Neobank Jupiter secures NBFC licence; will raise debt to push lending business

Neobanking startup Jupiter has secured a non-banking finance company (NBFC) licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), a development that will help it dole out credit from its books.
Jitendra Gupta, founder of Bengaluru-based Amica Financial Technologies Ltd., which runs the startup.The development is significant for Jupiter which otherwise has been scaling its lending operations through partner NBFCs.
Sequoia and Tiger Global backed-Jupiter intends to capitalise the lending business with around Rs 100 crore and raise an additional Rs 100 crore in debt to fund the NBFC's credit operations. It aims to hit annual disbursements of Rs 600-700 crore in short- and medium-term personal loans.
The NBFC will be housed under Amica Finance, a separate entity.

HDFC Bank, Axis Bank Sign Definitive Agreements with Go Digit

HDFC Bank and Axis Bank intimated stock exchanges that they would acquire up to a 9.94 per cent stake in insurtech startup Go Digit Life Insurance.
HDFC Bank said that it has executed definitive agreements to invest Rs. 69.90 crore in the insurtech firm in two tranches and has made the first tranche of payment of Rs 10.93 crore for the acquisition.
Similarly, Axis Bank also executed definitive agreements to invest Rs. 69.90 crore in two tranches and has made the first tranche of payment of Rs. 10.93 crore for acquisition.
The transaction is expected to be completed by 3-6 months from the execution date.
The first tranche investment is subject to IRDAI granting requisite approval to Go Digit Life for the application filed by Go Digit Life.

Tamil Nadu's Manamadurai pottery gets GI tag

The right proportion of mud, clay and heating makes this product very strong. The main raw materials for making these pots are soil and water.
These pots have put this village in Tamil Nadu on the global map. Manamadurai in Sivagangai district is known for pottery making.The Manamadurai pottery recently earned a Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
The Vaigai river enriches the clay used for the Manamadurai pottery. Pot making requires expertise as the bottom has to be perfectly round. The circumference of the pot and the neck should be proportionate so that the pot sits flat on the ground.
The sand, collected from different places of the district, is used for making pottery and dried for two days. The particles of the mud get separated by sieving.
The slurry is mixed with the sand and lead and graphite are added to the mixture to improve the quality. This mixture is now rich in calcium lime, ash, red lead, sodium silicate, manganese, iron, and plasticizing. The pot is also painted in different colours.
A unique type of clay is sourced from water bodies like Nedunkulam, Nathapurakki, Sundaranadappu, Seikalathur to make these pots. While making these pots, the five elements of nature namely earth, water, fire, sun and air are used. The basic material for pottery is mud, which represents the earth. Mud is mixed with water, another element of nature.

Zimbabwe to Introduce Gold-Backed Digital Currency

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe will launch a goldpegged digital currency and legalize them in the country.
It is believed that the government took this step for stabilizing the local currency after its continuous devaluation in comparison to the U.S. dollar.
This initiative taken by Zimbabwe will allow the exchange of Zimbabwean dollars with digital gold tokens and secure Zimbabweans against currency volatility.

Apr 25, 2023

LVMH becomes first European firm to cross market cap of $500 billion

The Paris-based luxury retailer has been able to reach that milestone on robust first quarter sales in China and a stronger euro. LVMH is the world's tenth biggest company.The Paris-based luxury retailer has been able to reach that milestone on robust first quarter sales in China and a stronger euro. LVMH is the world's tenth biggest company.Shares of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE climbed 0.10% at €902 on Monday. In April so far, LVMH shares have surged 6.9%, lifting its m-cap to about $500 billion.

SAIL-Bokaro Steel Plant sign MoU with Telecommunications Consultants India to explore 5G

SAIL-Bokaro Steel Plant (BSL) has signed a Memorandum of understanding with Telecommunications Consultants India (TCIL) to explore the potential of application of 5G/ IT/ telecom and other wireless communication technologies in SAIL-Bokaro Steel Plant.
SAIL-BSL has taken the initiative of becoming the first public sector undertaking (PSU) in the country to take initiative for setting up a dedicated 5G network with the help of TCIL which will pave way for the application of fifth-generation mobile system/information technology/telecom technologies in steel manufacturing
Besides the steel plant, this partnership will also be useful in providing innovative solutions in SAIL mines and collieries in Jharkhand, Smart Cities

HDFC Bank to Buy Stake in Griha, Gets Singapore Regulatory Body's Approval

HDFC Ltd received approval from the Monetary Authority of Singapore for the acquisition of shares in Griha Pte by HDFC Bank.
Griha Pte is a wholly-owned subsidiary of HDFC Investments. The company's ultimate holding corporation is HDFC Ltd.
The proposed agreement is subject to approval from the market regulator SEBI in respect of change in control of certain subsidiaries of HDFC Limited. After the acquisition, HDFC Bank will acquire directly or indirectly, 20 per cent or more of the issued share capital of Griha Pte.
Griha is a boutique private equity fund manager specialising in real estate private equity investments in India. The firm is registered with the Monetary Authority of Singapore as a fund management company.

Infosys, Aramco Ink Pact to Create Digitally Connected Employee Experiences

Infosys, a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Aramco, one of the world's leading integrated energy and chemicals companies, to collaborate on accelerating their human resource (HR) technology.
Infosys and Aramco aspire to bring new insights to HR data and analytics, scale the use of automation tools, and enhance employee experience through artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.
Infosys also plans to embed digital transformation practices and tools into Aramco's HR platform, enhancing the overall digital experience for employees to engage more productively.
Additionally, Infosys aims to leverage AI to further bolster Aramco's employee learning and development experiences and reduce skill gaps. This will attempt to help Aramco unlock talent to match people to opportunities in the company.
The collaboration also intends to work on analysing how automation can optimize repetitive tasks related to HR management through AI-powered learning, reducing time and effort in training delivery.

Apr 24, 2023

Shantanu Roy to Become New CMD of BEML Limited

Shantanu Roy was recommended as the next Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of BEML Limited, a Miniratna PSU under the Ministry of Defence. The Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) panel selected him for the position from a list of three candidates, all of whom were from BEML Limited. Roy is presently serving as Director (Mining & Construction Business) in the same organization and has over 30 years of extensive experience in capital goods sectors for defense, mining & construction, transportation, transmission, renewable, and large power projects.

Apr 23, 2023

South Indian Bank Debuts Two Flexible Savings Accounts for NRIs

South Indian Bank launched two flexible saving products for NRI customers dubbed as SIB SEAFARER and SIB PULSE for mariners and healthcare professionals.
With these products, NRIs can now take advantage of the freedom to either keep deposits or the required minimum amount in their savings accounts.
Here, the customer will get the flexibility to maintain a minimum balance of Rs. 10,000 in the linked accounts, eligible for the latest two non-resident accounts opened. There is no minimum balance required for maintaining the NRI term deposit of Rs. 2 lakh and above.

RBI Approves Appointment of Kaizad Bharucha as Deputy MD of HDFC Bank

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approved the appointment of Kaizad Bharucha as the Deputy Managing Director of HDFC Bank for three years from April 19, 2023.
The RBI also approved Bhavesh Zaveri's appointment as HDFC Bank's Executive Director for a period of three years, with effect from April 19.
HDFC Bank, which is India's largest private sector lender, had recommended the two appointments to the central bank back in November 2022. It appointed a Deputy Managing Director five years after Paresh Sukthankar resigned.
Bharucha has more than 35 years of experience in banking and he has been associated with HDFC Bank since 1995. Before his new assignment, Bharucha was executive director responsible for wholesale banking. He previously worked at SBI Commercial and International Bank.

Federal Bank Signs Agri Fintech Start-up KiVi as Banking Correspondent

Federal Bank entered into a Banking Correspondent agreement with Chennai-based KiVi, an agri fintech start-up operated by Agrosperity Tech Solutions, with a view to scaling and expanding its agri lending portfolio in Tamil Nadu.
Federal Bank launched the instant KCC platform in September 2022. Claimed to be the first of its kind in agriculture lending, it offers farmers convenience and turnaround time. It aims at providing small-value loans to small and marginal farmers, and is designed to facilitate efficient credit flow to underserved rural populations.
KiVi employs a phygital model that combines features of the lending technology platform and the last-mile channel to serve farmer households and MSMEs such as input retailers, output aggregators or other village entrepreneurs. It provides a frictionless and secure customer experience through seamless API integrations with bureaus and other service providers, along with user-friendly WhatsApp journeys.
Under the agreement, KiVi will acquire, service and augment Federal Bank's underwriting capability.

Apr 22, 2023

Kevin Vaz Resigns from Disney Star, to Join Viacom18 as its New CEO

Kevin Vaz, the virtual second-in-command in the Disney Star ecosystem, resigned from the company after a tenure of more than 20 years.
The TV broadcast executive will become Viacom18's next CEO. Also, significant organisational changes at Viacom18 are anticipated to occur in the next months.
Currently, Jyoti Deshpande is the CEO of Viacom18, and the CEO of the sports business is Anil Jayaraj. Deshpande also oversees Jio Studios and is president of Reliance Industries' media division.

Tata Steel Named Sustainability Champ for Sixth Time

Tata Steel was recognised as 2023 Steel Sustainability Champion by the World Steel Association.
The Sustainability Champions were announced at the World Steel Special General Meeting of the Board of Members held in Vienna, Austria.
Recognised for the sixth consecutive year, Tata Steel has bagged the honour every year since the programme's launch in 2018.
Being recognised as a Sustainability Champion for the sixth consecutive year by World Steel Association reinforces the company's commitment to sustainable development.

RBI Allows AU Small Finance Bank, Equitas Bank to Deal with Foreign Exchange

AU Small Finance Bank received permission from Reserve Bank of India to deal in foreign exchange. Reserve Bank of India granted Licence to act as Authorized Dealer Category-I (AD-I) under section 10 of FEMA, 1999 to deal in foreign exchange.
Equitas Small Finance Bank also received Authorized Dealer Category-I (AD-I) License from RBI.

TCS Tops LinkedIn's 2023 Best Place to Work in India

At a time when several IT giants are on a laying off spree, software major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) topped LinkedIn's 2023 Top Companies India list and emerged as the best place to work in the country.
Amazon and Morgan Stanley bagged the second and the third spots, respectively, in the seventh edition of the report, which featured 25 best workplaces for professionals in India.
Bengaluru led the workplace location list, followed by Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi and Pune.
In what could be called a startling trend, the list this year witnessed a shift from the tech companies towards e-sports and gaming sector. Companies such as Dream11 (20th spot) and Games24x7 (24th spot) made their way to the chart, marking the growing popularity of the gaming space. Out of the 25 companies, 10 are from the financial, banking sector and fintech sector.

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