General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - June 2020

Jun 2020

Jun 25, 2020

World's First Gold-backed US Digital Gold Currency in India

IBMC Financial Professionals Group in partnership with US Gold Currency Inc and Blockfills introduced the world's first monetary gold-backed US Gold digital currency in India, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Middle East and Africa. It was launched from Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) at a specially designed IBMC Hybrid Event in the virtual presence of officials from the US Gold Currency, Asia-Africa Development Council, GSEF and Blockfills USA.
Each US Gold digital currency is backed by a US American Eagle one ounce (33.931 gram) gold coin, minted by the US Federal Agency, US Mint.
The holders of the currency can redeem their digital assets as physical gold coin or in US dollars anywhere in the world.
This digital currency is available to customers ranging from retail and corporate investors, banks, financial institutions and sovereign wealth funds to treasuries and asset management companies.
It can also support corporates in reducing the cost of business transaction and settle their inter-country company transactions to address business risks.

Mali Awards Project Management Consultancy Contract to NTPC

Indian power producer NTPC Ltd won a project management consultancy contract for the development of a 500-MW solar park in the Republic of Mali.
The Indian enterprise had earlier this year won a similar contract involving a 285-MW solar project in Togo.
At present, NTPC has 62,110 MW of installed capacity and has an objective to become a 130 GW company by 2032.

Facebook-Jio Deal Gets CCI Nod

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved Facebook Inc.'s acquisition of a 9.99% stake in Jio Platforms Ltd. a deal that secures a foothold for the social media giant in one of the world's fastest-growing internet markets.
"Jaadhu is a newly incorporated company formed in March 2020 under the laws of the State of Delaware, US...Jaadhu is not engaged in any business in India or anywhere in the world," it said.
In its application to CCI, Facebook said the deal does not alter the competitive landscape in any relevant market. Regulatory filings show Facebook and its unit, WhatsApp Inc., have proposed to set up a digital marketplace as part of the investment in Jio Platforms, which houses the digital assets of Reliance Industries Ltd.

Cabinet Approves Setting Up of Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved setting up of Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) worth Rs. 15000 crore. Government has been implementing several schemes for incentivising the investment made by dairy cooperative sector for development of dairy infrastructure. However, government realises that even MSMEs and Private companies also need to be promoted and incentivised for their involvement in processing and value addition infrastructure.
AHIDF would facilitate much needed incentivisation of investments in establishment of such infrastructure for dairy and meat processing and value addition infrastructure and establishment of animal feed plant in the private sector. The eligible beneficiaries under the Scheme would be Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), MSMEs, Section 8 Companies, Private Companies and individual entrepreneur with minimum 10% margin money contribution by them. The balance 90% would be the loan component to be made available by scheduled banks.
Government of India will provide 3% interest subvention to eligible beneficiaries. There will be 2 years moratorium period for principal loan amount and 6 years repayment period thereafter.

Adani Power to Acquire US-based AES Corporation's Equity Stake in Odisha Power Generation Corpora...

Adani Power Ltd (APL) signed an agreement to acquire the 49% of stake(a total of 89,30,237 equity shares) in Odisha Power Generation Corporation(OPGC) from the affiliates of the US-based global energy company, AES Corporation(AES) for USD 135 million (around Rs. 1,019 crore).
The remaining 51% stake in OPGC is held by the Government of Odisha.
The 49% stake includes the total issued, paid-up and subscribed equity share capital.
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals, including compliance with applicable requirements related to the Government of Odisha & bills from the regulatory approvals like Competition Commission of India (CCI) and Reserve Bank of India(RBI).
OPGC operates a 1,740 Megawatt (MW) thermal power plant at Banharpalli in Jharsuguda district, Odisha, which is one of the lowest-cost power generated in the state.

Cooperative Banks to be Supervised by RBI

The Union government has decided to bring 1,482 urban cooperative banks and 58 multi-state cooperative banks, under the supervisory powers of the Reserve Bank of India.
The RBI's powers as they apply to the scheduled banks will also apply to cooperative banks.
According to I&B Minister Prakash Javadekar, Union government will bring an ordinance to put cooperative banks under RBI supervision.
The decision to bring 1,540 cooperative banks under RBI's supervision will give an assurance to more than 86 million depositors in these banks that their money amounting to Rs 4.84 trillion will stay safe.

Jun 24, 2020

Sellers must List on (GeM) Country of Origin of Product

In a push to promote local products, the Union government has made it mandatory for all sellers on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), a platform for public procurement, to list the Country of Origin while registering new products. Those who had uploaded products are getting regular warnings that they will be removed if the origin details are not updated.
The changes to the GeM, a Special Purpose Vehicle under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, are in line with the Centre's Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India policies.
Buyers on the platform can now see the percentage of local content in various products. They can also switch on a new Make in India filter to see products that match their preferences on local content.
For example, buyers can choose to buy only those products that meet a minimum 50% local content criteria. "In case of Bids, Buyers can now reserve any bid for Class I Local suppliers (Local Content > 50%). For those Bids below INR 200 crore, only Class I and Class II Local Suppliers (Local content > 50% and > 20% respectively) are eligible to bid, with Class I supplier getting purchase preference.

Karnataka Bank Launches KBL Micro Mitra

Karnataka Bank has launched a new product KBL Micro Mitra, wherein financial assistance up to Rs.10 lakhs can be provided to the Micro manufacturing and service enterprises either for working capital or for investment purposes.
As per Mahabaleshwara MS, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the bank, the micro and small entrepreneurs play a vital role in the revival of the economy, both in rural and urban India, besides creating huge job opportunities locally.
The facility comes with a simplified procedure and competitive rate of interest.

RBI Extends Special Liquidity Facility to Yes Bank for Three more Months

As per reports, with private sector lender Yes Bank still facing capital woes, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) agreed to extend the special liquidity facility for the lender for another three months.
The facility, announced earlier for three months till 16 June, was given to the bank as temporary assistance after the lender was bailed out by a bank consortium as part of an RBI-initiated reconstruction package.
Yes Bank had requested the RBI to extend the facility for a year. In March 2020, the government notified the "Yes Bank Ltd. Reconstruction Scheme, 2020".

Jun 23, 2020

FPI Minister Launches Food Processing Edition of Exclusive Investment Forum

Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Union FPI Minister launched the Food Processing Edition of the Exclusive Investment Forum by Invest India, the National Investment Promotion & Facilitation Agency of the Government of India.
Invest India has designed this form of unique sectoral series to conduct detailed conversations between global industry leaders and key decision-makers from the highest levels of the Union & State Governments of India. The forum witnessed participation from the senior-most policymakers from Union Government and 6 State Governments – Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh. Around 180 companies from 18 countries also participated in the forum.

UCO Bank Ties Up with Four Insurers

United Commercial Bank (UCO Bank) partnered with four insurers namely, State Bank of India (SBI) Life Insurance Company, the Oriental Insurance Company and Religare Health Insurance Company, Star Health and Allied Insurance Company to offer various insurance products for its customers.
This tie up will help to re-establish the bank's commitment to its customers for their financial well being.
With this tie up the bank will offer a broad range of insurance products.
The customer interface will be digitised to avail these features.

Yes Bank and Affordplan Jointly Launch Co-Branded Healthcare Card

Yes Bank Limited, an Indian public bank, has joined hands with Delhi-based fintech startup Affordplan, to launch a first of its kind co-branded healthcare card called 'Swasth Card' under Swasth program with the aim to enable families plan and manage their finances for their healthcare needs.
Besides, Yes Bank's wallet has also been integrated on Affordplan Swasth to pave the way for wallet QR (Quick Response) scan for making payments to merchant partners enlisted on the Affordplan Swasth app.
Swasth app will have affordable recharges from Rs. 100 up to a maximum balance of Rs. 1 lakh.
Yes Bank customers can get goal-based savings projection chart for medical treatment based on provided treatment & they will be given healthcare services and treatments at a discounted price.
The card also has insurance cover, cashback benefits, access to loan facilities for IPD (In Patient Department) treatments so as they can save on expenses related to OPD (Out Patient Department) consultation, diagnostics, medicines & IPD treatments.

Jun 22, 2020

India Becomes 12th Largest Holder of US Govt. Securities

India became the 12th largest holder of US government securities at the end of April, with holding worth USD 157.4 billion.
The data from the US Treasury Department showed that after significantly reducing the exposure in March to USD 156.5 billion, India marginally hiked the holding by USD 0.9 billion to USD 157.4 billion the next month.
While the holding touched a record high of USD 177.5 billion in February, the same was drastically reduced in March. The exposure stood at USD 164.3 billion in January.
At the end of April, Japan remained the country with the maximum exposure at USD 1.27 trillion, followed by China at USD 1.1 trillion and the UK at USD 368.5 billion.

Deloitte, SBI Capital to Advise on Privatisation of DISCOMS

Deloitte and SBI Capital Markets Ltd (SBI Cap) were hired as consultants to help with the privatisation of electricity distribution companies (DISCOMS) in Union territories.
While state-run Power Finance Corp. (PFC) appointed Deloitte to help with the sale process to privatise DISCOMS in Puducherry, Chandigarh and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, SBI Capital received the mandate for Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Lakshadweep is not being considered in this phase of privatization because of its low electricity load.
The appointment of these consultants to help with the preparatory work for the exercise, which is expected to be completed by December, shows that India has stepped up efforts to usher in next-generation power sector reforms. The power ministry will issue the standard bidding documents.

RBI Doubles Withdrawal Limit for PMC Bank Depositors

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised the withdrawal limit from Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank to Rs. 1 lakh from Rs. 50,000 but extended the moratorium on the bank for another six months.
The moratorium was earlier imposed till June 23, 2020 will now be applicable until December 22, 2020.
The decision was taken after reviewing bank's liquidity position, its ability to pay the depositors and to help depositors mitigate the difficulties faced during the prevailing COVID-19 situation.
With this relaxation, over 84% of the bank's depositors will be able to withdraw their entire account balance.

ISRO Receives Patent for Protective Garment

In yet another step towards sending the first Indian into space, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) received a patent for its Liquid Cooling and Heating Garment (LCHG) made of biocompatible fabrics and components to provide a comfortable temperature and removal of sweat for astronauts, for use in space for protection from hot and cold environments.
LCHGs are used in space, military applications, fire fighting and also for personal cooling and heating purposes for protection from hot and cold environments of industrial areas or in extreme temperature and humidity conditions that may exist in work environments. These garments have a system for circulating temperature controlling fluid into and out of the garments, for instance, through tubes inside the garment.
ISRO's invention is designed to permit long term use of the garment without any impact on the wearer in terms of skin irritation or infection and is low in cost of manufacture.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd Partners with HDFC Bank to Offer Industry's 1st Online Auto Retail Financing

Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) partnered with HDFC Bank to offer industry's 1st online auto retail financing on its end-to-end online automotive retail platform 'Click to Buy' to the customers.
Under this collaboration, HMIL will provide customised car financing solutions to its customers from HDFC bank through its online car buying platform.
This partnership enables the customers to choose loans and get the funds they need to buy their favorite Hyundai car without visiting HDFC Bank branch.
HMIL launched 'Click to Buy', an upgraded version of end-to-end online automotive retail platform to provide a safe, contactless and convenient purchasing experience to its consumers after the COVID times.

Jun 21, 2020

Govt. Approval Made Compulsory for Investments from Bordering Countries

Amid growing border tensions, the Finance Ministry has proposed restrictions on pension fund investments from any of the countries that share borders with India.
Foreign investment in funds regulated by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority is capped at 49% under the automatic route. A draft notification on Friday stated, "A government approval would be required for the investing entity or individual from any of the neighbour country including China. The relevant provisions of FDI policy issued from time to time would apply in all such cases."
Any foreign investment from these countries will be subject to approval from the government.
Currently, government permission is mandatory only for investments coming from Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Mukesh Ambani is Now among World's Top-10 Richest

Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries (RIL) entered into the list of world's top 10 richest, according to the Forbes Real-Time Billionaire list.
Ambani's net worth rose to $64.6 billion on the back of RIL's stock price hitting an all-time high of Rs. 1,738.95.
RIL has raised Rs.1.75 trillion against its net debt of Rs. 1.61 trillion, through a 24.71% stake sale of equity of its subsidiary Jio Platforms to nearly a dozen investors.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos topped the list with a net worth of $160.4 billion followed by Bill Gates with $109.9 billion. Ambani is a notch below Google's co-founder Larry Page.

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