General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - May 2018

May 2018

Jan 13, 2021

L&T Infotech, IBM Expand Alliance; to Build an Innovation Center in Bengaluru

Digital solutions major Larsen & Toubro Infotech (LTI) is expanding its multi-year global alliance with IBM to help businesses transform their operations through hybrid cloud adoption.
LTI will help clients migrate and modernise core business applications leveraging IBM cloud offerings.
As part of this relationship, LTI and IBM plan to establish an innovation centre in Bengaluru this year. The centre will offer a comprehensive suite of IBM's cloud, automation, integration, data and artificial intelligence solutions to foster innovation.
IBM will provide training to LTI employees to facilitate co-creation workshops and solution development for their clients.

Morgan Stanley Announces New India Investment Banking Co-heads

Morgan Stanley has appointed new heads for its Indian investment banking unit, promoting its senior bankers Kamal Yadav and Sachin Wagle to the role of co-heads of India Investment Banking.
Yadav and Wagle will be responsible for client coverage and management of the investment banking business in India.
Yadav joined the firm in 1999 and has been instrumental in building Morgan Stanley's India banking franchise over the past 21 years, while Wagle joined Morgan Stanley in 2000. He had been heading the firm's global capital markets practice since 2014.
The firm has also announced that Sanjay Shah will be the country head in India. He was the India co-head along with Aisha de Sequeira since 2013. Shah had joined Morgan Stanley as an associate in 1996 in the institutional equities division. He was promoted to managing director in 2005.

TCS to Acquire GE's Stake in TCS Saudi Arabia

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the country's largest software exporter, will acquire General Electric's (GE) stake in Tata Consultancy Services Saudi Arabia for $12,471 (about Rs. 9.13 lakh).
In September 2013, TCS had announced creation of a first of its kind All-Women Business Process Services Center in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), in partnership with GE. Over the past seven years, the center has expanded from 20 to almost 1,000 women employees and won several awards including the King Khalid Award 2019 for 'Responsible Competitiveness' and the 2018 Future of Workplace Award for 'Best women development and leadership programme'.
Saudi Desert Rose Holding BV (wholly-owned subsidiary of General Electric International (Benelux) BV) holds 24 per cent share in TCS Saudi Arabia, while the remaining 76 per cent is held by Tata Consultancy Services Netherlands BV (a wholly-owned subsidiary of TCS). Following the completion of the deal, which is expected to close in 3-6 months, TCS's shareholding in the company will increase to 100 per cent.

Jan 12, 2021

India's 7th Trade Policy Review (TPR) at WTO

The second session of the 7th Trade Policy Review (TPR) of India concluded at the World Trade Organization (WTO). This was the final session of the 7th trade policy review. Trade Policy Review is a key mechanism under the monitoring function of WTO. During this trade policy review, WTO examines the trade and related policies of the member countries with an aim to improve their adherence to WTO rules and to provide constructive feedback.
The official delegation of India for the 7th TPR was headed by Anup Wadhawan, the Commerce Secretary.
The Commerce Secretary responded to all the issues rose by the Members during the 1st TPR session of India.
The Commerce Secretary also urged the members to provide a permanent solution to Public Stock Holding (PSH) for food security.

Banks' Bad Loans to Double by September, Warns RBI

According to RBI report, bad loans of Indian banks may double by September this year despite a slight improvement in the gross non-performing assets (GNPA) during the Covid era.
Four banks may fail to meet the minimum capital level by September 2021 if there is no resuscitation by the stakeholders.
The warning came on a day the RBI cancelled the licence of Vasantdada Nagari Sahakari Bank. The Maharashtra-headquartered bank will be unable to pay its present depositors.
Stress tests by the RBI's Financial Stability and Development Council showed that the GNPA ratio of all banks may nearly double from the current 7.5% to a minimum of 13.5% and a maximum of 14.8%.

Adani Green Commissions 25 MW Solar Power Plant in Uttar Pradesh's Chitrakoot

Adani Solar Energy Chitrakoot One Limited, a step down subsidiary of Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL) has commissioned a 25 MW solar power plant in Uttar Pradesh's Chitrakoot.
This plant has a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Noida Power Company Limited (NPCL) at Rs. 3.08/KWh. With this commissioning, AGEL's total operational renewable capacity grows to 2,975 MW.
According to Vneet S Jaain, MD and CEO Adani Green Energy Ltd, the plant will be connected to the state-of-the-art Energy Network Operation Centre (ENOC) that continuously monitors and analyses performance of 80+ solar and wind plants across diverse locations in India.

IREDA-NHPC Partnership in Green Energy Projects

NHPC Limited has signed an MOU with the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) for providing assistance in setting up renewable energy (RE) projects for the next 5 years. The agreement was signed in the presence of Abhay Kumar Singh, NHPC CMD, and IREDA, CMD, Pradip Kumar Das.
Under the agreement NHPC will help in the knowledge and technology transfer and provide consultancy and research services.
NHPC has undertaken an ambitious plan to make a significant impact on the renewable energy landscape of the country.

Jan 11, 2021

Bandhan Bank Unveils Account for Army Personnel

Private lender Bandhan Bank has signed an agreement with the Indian Army to provide banking services to the personnel of the force.
The bank got the mandate to maintain and a Bank Shaurya Salary Account of the Army personnel. Bandhan Bank Shaurya Salary Account will have a zero balance facility. The Shaurya Salary Account also offers protection for self and assets.
Services under the account will be offered to serving personnel of the Army through the bank's network of banking outlets. The account will offer a host of features including zero-balance facility with 6 per cent interest on balance above Rs. one lakh, unlimited free ATM transactions, waiver of issuance and annual charge on Shaurya Visa Platinum debit card.

Axis Bank Announces no Penalty on Premature Closure of Fixed Deposits

In a first-of-its-kind move, private lender Axis Bank announced the removal of penalty on premature closure of all new retail term deposits booked on or after December 15, 2020 for a tenure of 2 years or more. The new feature will be applicable on all new fixed deposits and recurring deposits.
The objective of this customer-friendly feature is to inculcate and encourage retail customers to go for long-term savings without worrying about the sudden need for liquidity.
The new feature will be applicable on all new fixed deposits and recurring deposits. For new deposits booked for a tenure above 2 years, there will be nil premature penalty if the entire deposit is prematurely withdrawn post 15 months of booking. The new feature also offers no penalty on first withdrawal of up to 25 percent of term deposit principal value.

BHEL Secures Order for Steam and Power Plant from NALCO

State-run engineering firm BHEL bagged an order worth Rs. 450 crore for a steam and power plant from National Aluminium Corporation Limited (NALCO).
The Rs. 450 crore order has been placed on BHEL by NALCO for its 5th Stream Alumina Refinery Expansion Project at Damanjodi, Odisha.
BHELs scope in the contract includes design, engineering, manufacturing, supply, erection, testing and commissioning of 1×300 TPH Coal Fired Boiler, 18.5 MW Steam Turbine Generator and associated auxiliaries, including Flue-gas desulfurisation (FGD) and selective catalytic reduction (SCR).

Baidu and Geely Partner up for Smart Cars

China's search engine Baidu has announced it will partner with carmaker Geely to make smart electric vehicles (EVs).
Baidu will provide "intelligent driving capabilities", while Geely will offer design and manufacturing expertise.
Geely is one of China's largest carmakers, and also owns Volvo and a stake in Mercedes-Benz owner Daimler.
The two companies will be competing not just with Elon Musk's Tesla, but also with several Chinese competitors.
Baidu established its autonomous driving unit Apollo in 2017, which mainly supplies technology powered by artificial intelligence and works with a number of international and Chinese carmakers.

Jan 10, 2021

Volkswagen Finance Acquires Majority Stake in KUWY Tech

Volkswagen Finance Pvt. Ltd. (VWFPL) India, part of Volkswagen Financial Services, has increased its shareholding in Chennai-based KUWY Technology Service Pvt Ltd. (KWY) by picking up a majority stake in the latter.
VWFL first picked up a 25 per cent stake in the company in September 2019.
KUWY is an instant lending digital platform and through this acquisition Volkswagen Finance Pvt Ltd will grow its new & used car business through KUWY's pan India network on car financing. The acquisition is also in line with the Volkswagen Group's - India 2.0 strategy of VWFPL in its quest to offer added value to its consumers through digital channels.
VWFPL's association with KUWY will help improve efficiency in processes and reduce the loan processing time making it a win-win for both dealers and customers. VWFPL will however, continue to provide dealer funding & insurance products and services to the Volkswagen India Group dealer network.

Tata Power Partners with SIDBI

Tata Power announced its partnership with SIDBI (Small Industries Development Bank of India) to offer easy and affordable financing scheme for MSME customers in the rooftop solar segment. This scheme will empower MSMEs to adopt sustainable energy for their businesses and promote greener.
Easy and affordable financing has been one of the barriers for penetration of Solar in the MSME sector in the country.
In order to address this challenge, Tata Power and SIDBI have joined hands to design a unique Solar financing solution for the MSME customers helping them switch to rooftop solar without any collateral at an interest rate less than 10%.
This will also be complemented with a quick sanction and disbursement process (within 7 days with disbursement in 4 days).
This financing scheme is exclusively for MSME customers of Tata Power for both off-grid and on-grid connections.

PhonePe Ties up with ICICI Prudential Life Insurance

PhonePe, India's leading digital payments platform, today announced the launch of Term Life Insurance plans on its platform, in association with ICICI Prudential Life Insurance. With this launch, millions of PhonePe users can now protect their families from financial turmoil in the event of an untimely demise. The premiums start from as low as Rs 149 per annum. This policy can be availed instantly on the PhonePe app without any health check-ups and paperwork through an all-digital customer experience.
A term insurance plan is a pure protection plan with no maturity benefits. On death during the policy term, the sum assured is paid to the nominee in the policy. Ideally, one should have a life insurance cover of at least 10 times of one's annual take-home income.

Jan 09, 2021

SMCB Becomes First Urban Co-operative Bank to Transition to Small Finance Bank

With the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approving commercial banking licence for Shivalik Mercantile Co-operative Bank (SMCB), it has become India's first urban co-operative bank (UCB) to transition to a Small Finance Bank (SFB).
SMCB will begin its banking operations from April 2021 onwards under the name Shivalik Small Finance Bank (SSFB).
Earlier in January 2020, the SMCB received an in-principal approval for the commercial banking licence from the banking regulator, which gave SMCB 18 months time to commence the business.

LVMH Seals Purchase Of Tiffany After Takeover Fight

French luxury giant LVMH has completed its purchase of US jeweller Tiffany, having previously sought to walk away from the deal.
The firm has named a new team to lead Tiffany, which includes a son of LVMH chief executive Bernard Arnault.
It is paying $15.8bn (£11.6bn) for the firm - a slight discount from the initially announced $16.2bn.
The deal will help LVMH to expand into the jewellery sector - a fast-growing area of the luxury goods market.
LVMH first announced the acquisition more than a year ago. But progress stalled as the pandemic's impact on business reportedly soured Mr Arnault's view on the price initially agreed.
Tiffany, credited with inventing the modern engagement ring and immortalised in the Breakfast at Tiffany's film starring Audrey Hepburn, ultimately sued LVMH to force the deal to go ahead.

Bidding for Spectrum Auction to Start from March 1

Bidding for the sixth round of spectrum auction for radiowaves worth Rs. 3.92 lakh crore will start from March 1.
The Union Cabinet had approved a proposal for the auction of 2,251.25 Megahertz (MHz) of spectrum worth Rs. 3.92 lakh crore at the base price on December 17, 2020.
The Department of Telecom (DoT) has fixed January 12 for the pre-bid conference and last date for seeking clarification to the notice on January 28.
Telecom operators will need to submit their application by February 5 for participation in the auction.

Alaskan Wilderness Opens up for Oil Exploration

The Trump administration is pushing ahead with the first ever sale of oil leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
The giant Alaskan wilderness is home to many important species, including polar bears, caribou and wolves.
But after decades of dispute, the rights to drill for oil on about 5% of the refuge will go ahead.
Opponents have criticised the rushed nature of the sale, coming just days before President Trump's term ends.
Covering some 19 million acres (78,000 sq km) the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is often described as America's last great wilderness.
It is a critically important location for many species, including polar bears.
In the winter months, pregnant bears build dens in which to give birth.

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

September GK, August GK, July GK, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, BUSINESS AND ECONOMY, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, SPORTS, NATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEFENCE, PERSONS IN NEWS, DAYS AND EVENTS, AWARDS AND HONOURS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES, GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION, ART AND CULTURE, BOOKS AND AUTHORS, TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS, ART AND CULTURE, LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Start Discussion

On any topic

Take Tests

Compiled from GK updates

Login

Sign Up

Forgot Password

Download TCY App

Unlock All Services And Enjoy The Premium Benefits

US$ 10

US$ 13

US$ 15

US$ 17

US$ 19

US$ 20

US$ 21

US$ 22

US$ 23

US$ 24

US$ 25

US$ 26