General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - February 2017

Feb 2017

Aug 31, 2020

GVK Agrees to Cede Control of Airport Business to Adani Group

GVK Power & Infrastructure said that the Adani Group will take over its debt and have control over the Mumbai Airport and the Navi Mumbai Airport project.
The Adani Group will have a 74% stake each in the current Mumbai Airport and the Navi Mumbai Airport project.
The terms of cooperation include acquisition of debt by Adani from various GVK lenders including a Goldman Sachs led consortium and HDFC; releasing GVK of various obligations, securities and corporate guarantees given in respect of debt to be acquired by Adani; the ability for Adani to convert the acquired debt to equity of its airport subsidiary on mutually agreed terms.
Adani will also infuse fresh funds into the Mumbai International Airport MIAL consortium and support the achievement of financial closure of the Navi Mumbai airport project. No amount was specified.
Separately, GVK has notified the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, National Investment and Infrastructure Fund and PSP that the transaction documents stand terminated, as it is no longer effective and implementable.

Canara, HSBC, OBC Life Insurance & Andhra Pragathi Grameena Bank Enter into a Strategic Partnership

Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) Life Insurance Company Limited(Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance)and Andhra Pragathi Grameena Bank (APGB) entered into a strategic tie up virtually. The distribution tie up is to sell life insurance, health and pension products at all the branches of APGB. It is the 1st virtual launch of Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance tie up with APGB.
Initially, through this tie up, 20 insurance products (majorly traditional insurance) will be offered by Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance to APGB customers.
Further, the alliance will strengthen the insurance penetration in Tier 2 and 3 markets of Rayalaseema, Andhra Pradesh.
The tie up will provide an opportunity and responsibility to the insurance company to create awareness in the rural market about the purpose of having a life insurance, health insurance and pension plans in unanticipated times like COVID-19 pandemic.
The insurance company aims to connect with the rural areas and help them to financially secure their future.
With the partnership, Canara HSBC OBC Life Insurance expects efficient technology synergies between 2 companies to provide a seamless customer experience with an extended reach.

CBDT Asks Banks to Refund any Fees Levied on UPI Transactions in 2020

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) asked banks to return to customers and merchants any fees levied for making Unified Payment Interface (UPI) transactions in 2020, adding that such charges violate the law. The lenders were asked to stop all such impositions or face penal actions.
Private banks such as ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC Bank recently began charging customers for UPI transactions beyond a prescribed limit. Any cap on free UPI transactions is a breach of the PSS and IT Act.
Processing refunds and not imposing levies in the future on transactions could mean an added burden on the banking system, given the volumes.
The Finance Act of 2019 had made it mandatory for every business with a turnover of more that Rs 50 crore in the previous financial year to mandatorily provide a mechanism for electronic payment. Further, it was provided that no bank or system provider should impose any charge on a payer using electronic modes such as RuPay powered debit cards, UPI and BHIM UPI and QR code-based UPI payments.

Nestle to Buy Aimmune

Nestle offered $34.50 per share for the remaining 74.4% in peanut allergy treatment maker Aimmune Therapeutics it does not already own as it adds what it hopes will be a lucrative treatment to its portfolio.
The offer values the California-based biopharmaceutical company at $2.6 billion, including the $473 million that Nestle had already invested in Aimmune.
In January, Aimmune Therapeutics got approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Palforzia, making it the first medication approved for food allergies in children and teens.
As per Nestle, the acquisition is expected to add to organic growth in 2021 and to cash earnings by 2022/23.

Aug 30, 2020

Reliance Retail to Buy Future Group's Retail Business

Reliance Industries said that its unit Reliance Retail Ventures (RRVL) is acquiring the retail & wholesale business and the logistics & warehousing business from the Kishor Biyani-promoted Future Group as going concerns on a slump sale basis for a lumpsum amount of Rs. 24,713 crore.
Analysts say the deal marks the company's transition away from its energy business, towards becoming a consumer-focused retail and telecom company.
The sale would include key formats such as Big Bazaar, fbb, Foodhall, Easyday, Nilgiris, Central and Brand Factory.
Reliance Retail and Fashion Lifestyle (RRFLL) and RRVL will take over certain borrowings and current liabilities related to the business and discharge the balance consideration by way of cash.
Under the scheme, the retail & wholesale undertaking is being transferred to RRFLL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures, along with the logistics & warehousing undertaking.

Toy Cluster at Koppala Can Generate 40,000 Jobs in 5 Years

As per Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, India's 'first toy manufacturing cluster' to come up at Koppal has the potential to create 40,000 jobs in five years and attract over Rs. 5,000 crore investment.
Modi said that India has talent and ability to become a toy hub for the entire world and called upon startups to work towards realising this potential while being "vocal about local toys".
The global toy industry is over Rs. 7 lakh crore, but India's share was very small. PM Modi stressed on the need to work to increase it.
The Karnataka government is inviting global toy makers to the "first of its kind" toy manufacturing cluster in India at Koppala and had recently held a webinar cum panel discussion with a panel of leading toys manufacturers.
Karnataka is the third-largest market for toys in India (USD 159 million) 9.1 per cent of the national market.

Rival Social Video App Triller Makes $20-bilion Bid for TikTok

Joining the race to buy TikTok, rival social video platform Triller has approached its China-based owner ByteDance directly with a $20 billion bid via London-based global investment firm Centricus.
Triller claimed it made the bid directly to TikTok owner ByteDance and not to TikTok itself.
As TikTok acquisition turns messy, retail giant Walmart has already confirmed that it is teaming up with Microsoft in a bid for China-based short-video making platform that has 700 million users globally and 100 million in the US.
According to the reports, TikTok's parent company ByteDance is inching closer towards a pact amid the 90-day deadline set by the US President Donald Trump to sell its US, Canadian, Australian and New Zealand operations in a deal that is likely to be in the $20 billion to $30 billion range.

Aug 29, 2020

Banks Board Bureau Recommends Dinesh Khara as SBI Chairman

The Banks Board Bureau recommended Dinesh Kumar Khara for the post of chairman of State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest lender. However, the government will take the final call on the appointment.
Khara, the senior-most managing director at SBI, who looks after global banking, associates, and subsidiaries, will replace Rajnish Kumar, whose term as chairman comes to an end on October 7, 2020.
The Bureau, the headhunter for state-owned banks and financial institutions, interviewed the four managing directors of SBI. Keeping in view their performance in the interface and their overall experience, the Bureau recommended Dinesh Kumar Khara for the vacancy of chairman.
The Bureau also recommended Challa Sreenivasulu Setty as the candidate on the reserve list for the post.
The two other MDs were Arijit Basu, who is slated to retire next month, and Ashwani Bhatia, who was appointed MD early this month.

Ravi Shankar Prasad Launches "Chunauti" - Next Generation Start-up Challenge Contest

The Union Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launched "Chunauti"- Next Generation Start-up Challenge Contest to boost startups and software products with special focus on Tier-II towns of India.
The programme aims to identify around 300 start-ups working in identified areas and provide them seed fund of upto Rs. 25 Lakh and other facilities. The government has earmarked an amount worth Rs. 95.03 crore over a period of 3 years for the programme.
Under the contest, the Electronics and IT Ministry will invite startups in the following areas of work:
1. Edu-Tech, Agri-Tech & Fin-Tech Solutions for masses
2. Supply Chain, Logistics & Transportation Management
3. Infrastructure & Remote monitoring
4. Medical Healthcare, Diagnostic, Preventive & Psychological Care
5. Jobs & Skilling, Linguistic tools & technologies
The start-ups selected through the Chunauti contest will then be provided various support from the Government through Software Technology Parks of India centers across India.
he start-ups will be provided with incubation facilities, mentorship, access to venture capitalist funding, security testing facilities, industry connect and advisories in legal, HR, IPR and Patent matters.
The government will also provide them with a seed fund of upto Rs. 25 Lakh. The startups will also be provided with cloud credits from leading cloud service providers.

Next Tranche of Gold Bond to Open for Subscription

According to a statement by RBI, the issue price for the sixth tranche of the Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme has been fixed at Rs. 5,117 per gram,.
The Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme 2020-21 series VI will open for subscription on August 31, 2020 and close on September 4, 2020.
The government, in consultation with the RBI, has decided to offer a discount of Rs. 50 per gram less than the nominal value to those investors applying online and the payment against the application is made through digital mode.
Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) 2020-21 is issued by the Reserve Bank India on behalf of the Government of India.
The bonds are denominated in multiples of gram(s) of gold with a basic unit of 1 gram and the tenor of the SGB will be eight years with exit option after fifth year to be exercised on the interest payment dates.
The bonds are restricted for sale to resident individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), Trusts, Universities and Charitable Institutions.

Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) Completes Six Years

The 6th anniversary of Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY) was observed which was launched on August 28, 2014. On this occasion, Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman reiterated the importance of this biggest financial inclusion initiative in the world. It has been the foundation stone for the Indian government's people-centric economic initiatives.
The objective of PMJDY is to ensure access to financial services, namely, Banking/ Savings & Deposit Accounts, Remittance, Credit, Insurance, Pension in an affordable manner.
The Slogan of PMJDY is "Mera Khata – Bhagya Vidhaata."
It is operated by the Department of Financial Services under the Union Finance Ministry.
The scheme was launched based upon the following 6 pillars:
1. Universal access to banking services
2. Basic savings bank accounts with overdraft facility of Rs. 10,000/- to every household
3. Financial Literacy Program– Promoting savings, use of ATMs, getting ready for credit, availing insurance and pensions, using basic mobile phones for banking
4. Creation of Credit Guarantee Fund – To provide banks some guarantee against defaults
5. Insurance – Accident cover up to Rs. 1,00,000 and life cover of Rs. 30,000 on account opened between 15 Aug 2014 to 31 January 2015
6. Pension scheme for unorganised sector

Aug 28, 2020

PAG to Acquire Stake in Wealth Management, Investment Banking Business of Edelweiss

PAG has agreed to buy a controlling stake in the wealth management and capital markets business of Edelweiss Financial Services that also includes investment banking, its first large deal in the country after setting up local base in 2019.
PAG, among the largest Asia-focussed alternative asset management firm, on Thursday said in an official statement that it is paying Rs. 2,244 crore to buy a 51% stake in these businesses that will be carved out of Edelweiss subsidiary, called Edelweiss Global Investment Advisors.
In Edelweiss, both these businesses come under the omnibus umbrella of Edelweiss Global Wealth Management Limited (EGWML). The company will issue compulsorily convertible debentures (CCDs) to PAG worth Rs. 2,204 crore. There will also be a primary issuance of securities by Edelweiss' securities business of around Rs. 140 crore to EGWML and PAG along with the other existing shareholders.
The sale was approved at the board meeting held on Thursday, the company announced to the exchange. Parent Edelweiss will retain around 37% stake in the entity while existing investors Sanaka Capital and US-based Kora Management will own a total of 12%, company filings to the exchanges showed. Together, Sanaka and Kora had invested Rs. 1,160 crore in EGIA last year.

Mahindra Signs MoU with Israeki Firm - REE Automotive to Develop Electric Commercial Vehicles

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), (a part of Mahindra Group) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with REE Automotive, a Tel-Aviv, Israel based start-up firm to explore development and manufacturing of electric commercial vehicles for the global market.
The corner modular architecture of REE integrated with the design, engineering, sourcing, ecosystem and production capacity of Mahindra will provide zero emission vehicles, including the autonomous vehicles.
This will improve Mahindra's capabilities in the Electric Vehicle (EV) sector.
This partnership aims to provide 2-2.5 lakh electric commercial vehicle units over years to support the needs of REE's global customers and potential volumes of domestic and international markets of Mahindra.
REE will utilise the Mahindra's global presence, volume flexibility capability, engineering and product development.

CCI Approves Carlyle Group's Stake Acquisition in Airtel's Data Centre Business

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved acquisition of compulsorily convertible preference shares and equity shares in Airtel's data centre business, Nxtra Data, by Carlyle Group's Comfort Investments II.
The Carlyle Group in July had said that it would acquire about 25 per cent stake in Nxtra Data Ltd for USD 235 million (about Rs. 1,780 crore).
On completion of the deal, Carlyle will hold about 25 per cent stake in the business, with Airtel continuing to hold the remaining stake of about 75 per cent.
Nxtra Data is a fully-owned subsidiary of Bharti Airtel Ltd and provides data centre colocation services through its 10 data centres located in India, while Comfort Investments II is a special purpose acquisition vehicle, owned and controlled by investment funds advised by the affiliates of The Carlyle Group Inc.

RBI Announces OMO Purchase of Govt. Securities

The Reserve Bank of India is to conduct open market operations or OMO of government securities worth Rs. 20,000 crore in two tranches.
On a review of current and evolving liquidity and market conditions, RBI has decided to conduct simultaneous purchase and sale of govt securities under Open Market Operation (OMO) for an aggregate amount of Rs. 20,000 cr in two tranches of Rs. 10,000 cr each.
The auctions will be conducted in August and September and the results will be announced on the same day.
Eligible participants need to submit their bids and offers in electronic format on the RBI core banking solution (E-Kuber) system.

Walmart Joins Microsoft in Pursuit of Deal to Acquire TikTok

Walmart Inc. has teamed up with Microsoft Corp. in a joint bid to acquire TikTok, a surprise move that signals the retail giant's desire to become a force in technology and media and reach younger shoppers.
Walmart said that the move could help grow its third-party online marketplace unit along with its nascent advertising arm, two areas that Chief Executive Officer Doug McMillon would like to expand. The two companies already work together, as Walmart uses Microsoft's Azure cloud platform across the entire company.

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Launches Real-time Assistance Service

Private life insurer Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance launched a new technology service called 'Smart Assist' that provides real-time assistance to customers.
Using a screen sharing feature, the agent will be able to assist customers live to fill up the proposal form and also help them in the policy purchase journey.
Even if there is an error in the form that has to be corrected in the proposal form, this can be done through the screen-sharing process.
Smart Assist is designed to help customers know all about their product, through virtual assistance, since face-to-face meetings have been a challenge amid the coronavirus pandemic.

HDFC Bank, Indusind and Kotak out of FTSE Indices

FTSE Russell won't be including HDFC Bank Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. and IndusInd Bank Ltd. to its indices as they fail to meet minimum foreign headroom requirement. Shares of the private banks gained through the week on expectations of inflows from inclusion in the FTSE world indices as part of its semi-annual review. So far this week, HDFC Bank is up 2.6%, while Kotak Mahindra Bank and IndusInd Bank have gained up to 6% and 18%, respectively.
Following the increased foreign investment limits for publicly listed companies in India, FTSE Russell, an index compiler that's a unit of London Stock Exchange Group Plc., had decided to increase the weight of Indian constituents in its global indices.

Innoviti and Visa Partner to Develop Installments Platform for Face-to-Face Transactions

Innoviti Payment Solutions Pvt. Ltd.(Innoviti) and Visa have partnered to develop an installment platform, which will enable the issuers to extend credit to their cardholders at face-to-face Point of Sale (PoS) in India. The installments platform with the suite of platform capabilities leveraging Innoviti's uniPAYNEXT platform and Visa's APIs, provides shoppers the ability to choose how they pay during the purchase.
As part of this partnership, Innovity and Visa plan to collaborate and pilot a variety of installment use cases.
Initially, the platform will be piloted with one bank and enabled for key electronic merchant chains on Innoviti's platform.
It will finally be extended to other banks, merchants, and payment service providers through easy to use APIs, using which they can develop more use cases.

Aug 27, 2020

Gujarat Tops Export Preparedness Index Compiled by NITI Aayog and the Institute of Competitiveness

Gujarat has topped the Niti Aayog's Export Preparedness Index 2020 followed by Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu in the second and third place respectively, according to the government think tank's report released on Wednesday. According to the report, six of eight coastal states feature in the top ten rankings, indicating the presence of strong enabling and facilitating factors to promote exports.
Among the landlocked states, Rajasthan performed the best, followed by Telangana and Haryana.
Among the Himalayan states, Uttarakhand topped the chart, followed by Tripura and Himachal Pradesh, the report said adding that across Union Territories, Delhi has performed the best, followed by Goa and Chandigarh.
The report noted that Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand are two landlocked states that had initiated several measures to promote exports.
Other states facing similar socio-economic challenges can look at the measures taken by Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand and try to implement them to grow their exports.

Reliance Ropes in Ex-IOC Chief as Group President

Former Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) chairman Sanjiv Singh joined Reliance Industries as group president for firm's oil-to-chemicals business.
RIL's O2C business consists of the group's twin oil refineries at Jamnagar in Gujarat, petrochemical plants, 51% of fuel retail and aviation fuel venture, and bulk wholesale marketing businesses.

Axis Bank Introduces 'Liberty Savings Account'

Axis Bank introduced 'Liberty Savings Account' for the Indian Youth, to address the ever-changing lifestyle needs of young and digitally interested Indians. It offers a complimentary hospital cash insurance cover of up to Rs. 20,000 per year, which covers hospital expenses incurred under COVID -19, which makes this a 1st of its kind savings account to cover the pandemic. This account targets to meet the lifestyle requirements of the working class that falls under 35 years of age.
It allows customers to maintain a minimum balance of Rs. 25,000 per month or spend the same amount each month on lifestyle needs through the Liberty debit card or savings account (via NetBanking, Axis Mobile or UPI- Unified Payments Interface).

Seventeenth Meeting of India-Vietnam Joint Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technolo...

The 17th meeting of the India-Vietnam Joint Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation was held virtually which was co-chaired by India's External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh. The focus of the meet was to review the recent developments in India-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and to put forth measures and orientations for cooperation in the new period, towards the 50th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties (January 26, 1972-2022).
India-Vietnam signed the following Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs):
Cooperation between Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service (SSIFS), New Delhi and Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam (DAV), Hanoi.
MoU between National Maritime Foundation, New Delhi and Scientific Research Institute of Sea and Islands, Hanoi.
Both sides agreed to boost their economic and defence engagement and also work towards exploring closer cooperation in emerging areas such as civil nuclear energy, space, marine sciences and new technologies in order to bring two-way trade to US$15 billion as soon as possible.

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