General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - January 2019

Jan 2019

Apr 19, 2022

Kotak Mahindra Bank Launches Kotak FYN

Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMBL) launched Kotak FYN, a new enterprise platform designed specifically for Business Banking and Corporate clients. Customers of the bank can utilise the portal to conduct all trade and service transactions. The Kotak FYN portal will contain many other services by the fourth quarter of 2022, including account services, payments, and collections.
The portal will also have a dashboard that consumers can personalise, real-time tracking of transaction limits, access to prior transactions, and upcoming transaction events, among other things.
Kodak FYN is a digital corporate portal that serves as a one-stop shop. The backbone of rising digital trade will be FYN's end-to-end digital architecture, better efficiency, speed, and enhanced security protocols.

MCA Registers Highest ever 1.67 lakh Companies in FY 2021-22

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) registered over 1.67 lakh new companies in FY22, compared to 1.55 lakh in FY21, an 8% YoY growth. The growth is significant, considering that the FY21 number was already the highest annual number of all time.
During FY22, the states having the highest number of company registrations were Maharashtra (31,107), followed by Uttar Pradesh (16,969), Delhi (16,323), Karnataka (13,403), and Tamil Nadu (11,020).
Sector-wise, the maximum number of companies were incorporated in business services (44,168), followed by manufacturing (34,640), personal & social services (23,416), and agriculture & allied activities (13,387).
As part of the Government of India's Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) effort, the MCA has taken several steps to reduce the number of procedures, time, and costs associated with launching a business in India.

India Pulses and Grains Association Appoints Bimal Kothari as Chairman

India Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA), the apex body for India's pulses trade and industry, appointed Bimal Kothari as the new Chairman with immediate effect.
He has been the Vice-Chairman of IPGA since 2011 when the trade body was formed. Kothari takes over as the third chairman of the association after Pravin Dongre and Jitu Bheda.

Wipro Appoints Satya Easwaran as India Head

Wipro appointed Satya Easwaran as the Country Head for India. Satya will be in charge of strengthening Wipro's business in India across key industry sectors through strategic consulting, transformation and modernization engagements. He will help clients leverage Wipro's capabilities and investments in Cloud, Digital, Engineering R&D, Data/Analytics and Cybersecurity to succeed in their business and digital transformation initiatives.
Wipro, which has 231,671 employees globally, has around 75% of its employee base in India. The appointment is part of the company's transformation strategy to have more local leaders announced in 2020.

Govt. Amends FEMA Rules to Allow 20% FDI in LIC

The government amended rules of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), paving the way for up to 20 per cent foreign direct investment in the insurance behemoth LIC. The government is planning to dilute its stake in LIC through the Initial Public Offering (IPO). LIC in February 2022 had filed the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) before the markets regulator Sebi for the IPO.
Foreign investment in LIC shall be subject to the provisions of the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956, (LIC Act) as amended from time to time and such provisions of the Insurance Act, 1938, as amended from time to time, as are applicable to LIC.

Apr 18, 2022

Alliance Air Becomes Central Govt's Independent Business Unit

Regional airline Alliance Air became an independent business unit under the Central government's control. Alliance Air was an esrtwhile part of Air India prior to the latter's divestment. At present, it is operated as a division under the Air India Asset Holdings Pvt Ltd (AIAHL).
It was founded in 1996 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of then Indian Airlines, which later merged with Air India.
The airline mainly operates on domestic regional routes as part of the government's Regional Connectivity Scheme. Currently, it has 19 aircraft -- 18 ATR-72s and 1 Dornier-228 -- which it operates on over 100 regional routes connecting Tier-II and Tier-III cities.

Govt Enhances Authorised Share Capital Of Three Public Sector General Insurance Companies

Three public sector general insurance businesses – National Insurance Company Limited, Oriental Insurance Company Limited, and United India Insurance Company – have had their authorised share capital increased by the government. This will allow for a capital inflow of Rs. 5,000 crore into these businesses.
The permitted capital for National Insurance will now be 15,000 crore (1,500 crore shares with a face value of 10 apiece), up from the current 7,500 crore, according to a notification released by the Finance Ministry (1,500 crore shares with a face value of ten each).

TCS gets deal from UK Financial Ombudsman Service to drive digital transformation

Tata Consultancy Services was selected as a strategic partner by the UK Financial Ombudsman Service (Ombudsman) to accelerate its digital transformation. Operating within the UK public services sector, the Ombudsman provides free and easy-to-use services that help resolve complaints between consumers, small businesses, and financial services businesses.
The Ombudsman partnered with TCS to help achieve its goal of preventing complaints and unfairness, and for better serving and supporting its customers. Leveraging its PACE innovation ecosystem, TCS will design and implement a new greenfield Digital Customer Portal that will improve the experience for complainants and respondents.

Apr 17, 2022

BlackRock-led Consortium to Invest Rs. 4,000 cr in Tata Power Renewables

Tata Power said that a BlackRock Real Assets-led consortium, including Mubadala Investment Company, would invest Rs 4,000 crore for a 10.53% stake in the company's renewable energy unit. This translates to a base equity valuation of Rs 34,000 crore for Tata Power Renewables, the company said in a stock exchange filing. The first round of investment is expected to be completed by June and the rest by the end of 2022. The final shareholding will range from 9.76% to 11.43% on final conversion.
The investment is expected to fund Tata Power Renewable Energy's aggressive growth plans in the rooftop and electric vehicle charging space in India.

Cabinet Approves Pact between SEBI, Canada's Manitoba Securities Commission

The Union Cabinet approved signing of a pact between the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and Canada's Manitoba Securities Commission. The bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) seeks to have a formal basis for cross-border co-operation in the area of securities regulations.
It would facilitate mutual assistance, contribute towards efficient performance of supervisory functions, aid in imparting technical domain knowledge and enable effective enforcement of the laws and regulations governing securities markets. The MoU would also make investors from Manitoba eligible for registration as FPIs (Foreign Portfolio Investors) with SEBI.

Paytm Becomes Official Digital Payments Partner for PMs' Museum

Paytm become an official digital payments partner for the prime ministers' museum in the national capital. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 'Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya' (prime ministers' museum), which is a tribute to every prime minister in the country since independence. At the inauguration, Modi was the first person to buy the ticket through Paytm electronic data capture machine.
As the official partner for the museum, Paytm is offering its payment gateway, EDC (Electronic Data Capture) machines and QR code payment options to make way for superfast, convenient and secure transactions.

Apr 16, 2022

ICICI Bank Inks MoU with GIFT SEZ to Promote Global, Indian Businesses

Private sector lender, ICICI Bank signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with GIFT SEZ to promote global and Indian businesses there.
As part of the MoU, ICICI Bank and GIFT SEZ would jointly work towards attracting global investors and capital market firms to set up operations in GIFT City, Gandhinagar. Both the organisations would promote GIFT SEZ among Indian and foreign MNCs as the preferred location for availing cross-border trade finance.
The two institutions would act in a coordinated manner to promote GIFT SEZ as a hub for wealth management business. Another objective of the MoU is to promote GIFT SEZ as the destination of choice for offering competitive regime for setting up capital markets business among industry stakeholders such as Alternate Investment Fund (AIF), Portfolio Management Services (PMS), Broking Entities, Venture Capital, Private Equity Funds and Custodians.

The Government Exempts the Import of Cotton from Customs Duties

The Government decided to exempt all customs duty on import of cotton to lower the price of cotton in the public interest. This exemption would benefit the textile chain- yarn, fabric, garments and made ups and provide relief to textile industry and consumers. Industry has been demanding for removal of 5% Basic Customs Duty (BCD) and 5% Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC) on raw cotton. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) notified the exemption from Customs duty and Agriculture Infrastructure development Cess for import of cotton. Removal of import duty on raw cotton should have salutary effect on cotton price in India.

Apr 15, 2022

BPCL Collaborates with Microsoft to Leverage Cloud and AI to Redefine Customer Experience

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) and Microsoft announced a strategic cloud partnership aimed at accelerating the firm's digital transformation and shaping the future of innovation in the oil and gas industry. The collaboration seeks to unlock the opportunities that Microsoft's cloud provides to address the unique challenges of the oil and gas sector, enabling BPCL to accelerate the modernization of its tech architecture to enhance customer experience.
The partnership gives a strong fillip to BPCL's digital-first strategy, as part of 'Project Anubhav' to redefine customer experience through the pillars of trust, personalization, and convenience. Through a seven-year collaboration, Microsoft will provide infrastructure as a service (IAAS), platform as a service (PAAS), network and security services on the cloud, including Azure native services on Azure Datafactory, API, IOT and analytics.

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

August GK, July GK, June 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