Month: April 2021

Startup Digest: Top stories of the week

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

The Indian startup ecosystem saw $713 million in funding this week across 13 deals, as per data from Venture Intelligence. The total funding so far in 2021 now stands at $8415 million, with 244 deals so far. Here’s a wrap of all that hit headlines this week:

Urban Company turns unicorn with new funding

Home services platform Urban Company has become a unicorn, with its valuation touching nearly $2 billion, sources said. The company has raised Rs 1,410 crore in its latest funding, according to filings sourced from Tofler.
Entrackr was the first to report on Urban Company’s latest funding and valuation.

According to the filings, the round saw participation from Prosus Ventures (earlier Naspers), Tiger Global via its funds Internet Fund V, along with Wellington management and DF Capital.

With this, Urban Company has become the 12th unicorn in 2021. The company did not offer any comments on the latest funding and the valuation.

Founded in 2014, the startup offers services such as beauty and spa at home, cleaning, plumbing, carpentry, appliance repair, painting, etc. through its mobile app and website. It operates in 18 cities in India and in four international markets (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sydney & Singapore). The company has a partner network of over 30,000 service professionals.

CCI approves Tata-BigBasket deal

The Competition Commission of India has given its approval to Tata Group’s Tata Digital arm to take up to 64.3% stake in BigBasket’s B2B arm Supermarket Grocery Supplies Private Ltd. The deal will value BigBasket at about $1.8 billion, sources told CNBC TV 18. As part of the deal, SuperMarket Grocery Supplies will take sole control over BigBasket’s B2C business Innovative Retail Concepts Private Limited.

The Tata Group is set to buy out BigBasket’s early investor Alibaba, which held a 29.1% stake in the company, according to data from Tracxn.

Byju’s to become most-valued unicorn

Edtech player Byju’s in talks to raise $150 million from UBS Group AG, sources informed CNBC-TV18. Byjus’ valuation is expected to touch $16.5 billion with this funding, This will make the company the most valued unicorn, surpassing fintech giant Paytm, which was valued at $16 billion in its last round of funding in November 2019.Byju’s has raised nearly $2 billion in funding since January of 2020 from marquee names such as Tiger Global, Mary Meeker’s Bond Capital, T Rowe Price, Silver Lake and several others, as per data from Venture Intelligence.

The company has also been on an acquisition spree, having acquired WhiteHat Jr last year for $300 million.Earlier this month, Byju’s said it has acquired Aakash Educational Services Ltd (AESL) to bolster its presence in the test preparation segment in the country. According to sources, the deal was worth close to $1 billion (about Rs 7,300 crore), news agency PTI had reported.Latest reports suggest Byju’s is looking at more acquisitions of players such as Great LEarning and GradeUp.

Zomato files DRHP for Rs 8,250 crore IPO

Food delivery startup Zomato has filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the market regulator SEBI for an initial public offering (IPO) to raise up to Rs 8,250 crore.

According to the DRHP, Zomato will offer equity shares aggregating up to Rs 8,250 crore. Of this, the company will issue fresh shares worth Rs 7,500 crore, while Rs 750 crore will be an offer for sale for its existing investor Info Edge.
Info Edge had announced that it would sell shares worth Rs 750 crore in the upcoming Zomato IPO.

In February, the company had raised $250 million from five investors including hedge fund Tiger Global Management for a post-money valuation of $5.4 billion.

Kotak Mahindra Capital, Morgan Stanley India, Credit Suisse Securities India, BofA Securities India and Citigroup Global Markets India are the lead book running managers for Zomato’s IPO.

“We have incurred restated loss for the year/period of Rs 1,069.16 million, Rs 10,102.33 million, Rs 23,856.01 million and Rs 6,821.99 million in Fiscals 2018, 2019 and 2020, and in the nine months ended December 31, 2020, respectively, the DRHP said.

“We expect our costs to increase over time and our losses will continue given significant investments expected towards growing our business,” it added.
The company said that the COVID-19 pandemic, or a similar public health threat, has had an impact and could further impact its business, cash flows, financial condition and results of operations.

Zomato looks to raise valuation to $7-9 billion via IPO

Food delivery giant Zomato has filed a DRHP with the market regulator Sebi to raise over a billion dollars. Sources with direct knowledge have told CNBC-TV18 that the company is eyeing a valuation of over 7 billion dollars and up to 9 billion dollars from the equity issuance via the IPO.

A large range of valuation expectation is reflective of the uncertainty due to the second wave of COVID-19 and a lot will depend upon the investor response during the roadshows in the absence of a direct peer comparison in the Indian market.

Analysts have also indicated that normally companies look at a 10 percent equity issuance via IPO and by that logic they may be pencilling in an $8 billion kind of a valuation for the company.

Even at the lower end of the $7-$9 billion expectation, it is substantially higher than the recent fundraising round which gave it a value of $5.4 billion.
Zomato and Infoedge did not offer any comment on CNBC-TV18’s query on valuations.

IFC backs Prime Venture Partners

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group,has come in as an investor in early-stage venture capital firm Prime Venture Partners. Prime Venture Partners invests in startups across fintech, healthcare, education, logistics & SaaS, with several of its portfolio startups building on platforms like Aadhaar, IndiaStack, UPI, GST, HealthStack, etc. Some of Prime Venture Partners’ portfolio includes Ezetap, Dozee, MyGate, KredX among others.

Amazon India removes products priced above MRP from its platform

Amazon India said it was removing listings and suspending accounts of sellers on its platform pricing their products above the maximum retail price (MRP) amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There is no place for price gouging on Amazon and in line with our policy we continue to actively monitor our marketplace and take necessary action including removal of listings and suspension of accounts against sellers who are selling products above the MRP, which is in violation of Indian laws,” reads a statement from Amazon India, an e-commerce giant in the country.

In March 2020, Amazon had also removed hundreds of thousands of “high-priced offers” and suspended accounts of thousands of sellers who were found involved in price gouging. The company was reported to have removed as many as 530,000 products from its marketplace and suspended 2,500 seller accounts.

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), the apex body of traders in the country, on April 26 accused e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart of delivering non-essential items flouting the COVID-19 restrictions imposed by different states.

In Funding News,

ElasticRun raises $75 mn

ElasticRun, a kirana commerce platform, has announced the closing of a $75 million funding round co-led by existing investors, Prosus Ventures and Avataar Ventures. ElasticRun’s commerce platform provides a range of physical and digital services to rural Indian kirana stores.

“We are delighted to see the progress ElasticRun has made since we made our first investment 18 months ago,” said Ashutosh Sharma, Head of Investments for India at Prosus Ventures.

“The ElasticRun team have more than weathered the extreme headwinds caused by the pandemic. Due to their focus on delivering value for all their partners, they are entering 2021 in a very strong position for continued growth.”

pi Ventures to raise Rs 565 crore via Fund II; to invest in disruptive tech startups

Early-stage venture fund pi Ventures, which invests in disruptive Artificial Intelligence and DeepTech startups, has launched its second fund with a target corpus of Rs 565 crore and a greenshoe option of Rs 185 crore.
The VC is looking to back around 25 global disruptors from India with this fund and has received approvals from Sebi.

With Fund II, pi will continue to focus on early-stage (seed/ pre-Series A/Series A) investments in startups focused on disruptive AI as well as ventures going beyond digital deep tech into – space technologies, material science, Biotech and life sciences, the firm said. With Fund 1, so far pi has invested in 13 category-defining deep tech startups like Niramai, Locus, Wysa, Agnikul and Pyxis.

pi Ventures closed its Fund I of Rs 225 cr in 2017-18. Its investors include CDC UK, IFC World Bank, SIDBI, Hero Enterprise’s Sunil Kant Munjal, Electronic Development Fund (managed by Canbank Ventures), Canada’s In Colour Capital, Accel Partners and family offices and entrepreneur investors Binny Bansal, Bhupen Shah, Raghuveer Tarra, Ullas Kamath among others.

Manish Singhal, co-founder and Managing Partner at pi Ventures, said, “We are very excited to launch our second fund and continue our mission to back startups which are creating global solutions from India. With AI and other technologies steadily maturing, we can expect some interesting applications in the coming days.”

“With this fund, we aim to support talented entrepreneurs who are creating disruptive products that are solving big fundamental problems, with unique solutions on the back of technology innovations.”

“So far our investment strategy has worked extremely well and we have a healthy portfolio of companies that have scaled massively despite the current pandemic situation. Over the last two years, we have built a strong team that has delivered outstanding performance thereby strengthening our vision of helping make India a ‘DeepTech’ nation.”

With the pandemic giving massive acceleration to AI adoption, AI is shifting gears and will disrupt existing business models. pi Ventures’s latest fund aims to continue to back such disruptive tech ventures that are set out to create 10x differentiated businesses, the firm said.

CDC Group announces Rs 250 crore investment into Fourth Partner Energy

CDC Group, the UK’s development finance institution (DFI) and impact investor, today announced Rs 250 crore investment into Fourth Partner Energy, India’s leading solar energy company for commercial and industrial businesses.

The capital from CDC Group will be in the form of Non-Convertible Debentures and Fourth Partner Energy will deploy this mezzanine capital towards growing its renewable solutions platform across India and South Asia. This also marks CDC’s foray into India’s Commercial & Industrial solar segment and Fourth Partner Energy’s first major round of fund-raising in 2021.

CDC’s investment will support India’s clean energy transition and enable the provision of cleaner energy to businesses. It will fund approximately 217 megawatts (MW) Greenfield renewable power generation in India, to displace primarily thermal power generation, avoiding 258k tonnes of annual CO2 emissions.

CDC’s facility will catalyse the growth of the sector by helping to accelerate the uptake of renewable energy by corporates at a quicker pace.
In 2020, the company secured a Rs 110 Cr ($15 M) round of funding from Swiss climate action fund ResponsAbility and a Rs 126 crore ($16 million) investment from a consortium of European lenders, led by Symbiotics.

Fourth Partner Energy has also tied up with Lithium Urban Technologies to form a 50:50 JV, Shuchi Anant Virya to offer EV charging infrastructure solutions. The JV has commissioned EV charging hubs across Gurugram, Pune, Kolkata and has partnered with HPCL to set up chargers across its retail fuel outlets.

Global edtech major upGrad raises $120 million

Online higher education Company, upGrad raised $120 million from Temasek, a global investment company headquartered in Singapore. This is the first external funding raised by the edtech major.

Since its inception in 2015, upGrad has been fully owned, funded, and run by its co-founders and plans to use the fresh capital to further strengthen its team, scale its global market operations, bolster its technology and product capabilities, pursue M&A opportunities, expand graduate and post-graduate degree portfolio in India and scale up operations to achieve its $2 billion revenue goal by 2026.

Credit Suisse acted as the exclusive financial advisor to upGrad, and Rajaram Legal acted as legal advisor.

CareStack raises $22.5 million

Home-grown cloud dental software startup CareStack has raised $22.5 million from SteadView Capital, Delta Dental of California, Accel Partners, Eight Roads and F-Prime Capital. The firm raised $28 million raised in 2019 from the same investors which takes its total funding to more than $60 million.

CareStack will use the fresh capital to expand its operations and to double its workforce and grow the annual revenue four times, it said.

Simple Energy plans to raise $15 million

Bengaluru-based electric vehicle startup Simple Energy plans to raise $15 million (over Rs 112 crore) in funding from domestic and foreign venture capital funds ahead of the launch of its flagship e-scooter Mark 2 mid this year.
The Series A funding is expected to be closed by the third quarter of this year, and the capital raised will be utilised in setting up a manufacturing facility, among others, Simple Energy said.

“Simple Energy plans to raise USD 15-million in Series A. This round of Series A is expected to be closed by the third quarter of this year and might be backed by VCs based in India and New York,” the EV maker said.

The company said it plans to deploy 60 percent of the funds to build a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility with a capacity to produce 50,000 vehicles annually, the rest of the funds will go into setting up experience centers, and scaling up the workforce. The company is looking to produce and sell 50,000 units in the first 12 months of its launch, it said.

Simple Energy had also recently released the testing images of the prototype version of the production vehicle earlier this month, post-raising pre-series funding of an undisclosed amount.

The flagship e-scooter which will have a 4.8 kWh lithium-ion battery with a claimed range of 240 km in eco mode and top speed of 100kmph, is set to be rolled out mid this year with pre-bookings beginning from the launch day itself, followed by the deliveries soon, it said.

The e-scooter will be priced at Rs 1.10 lakh- Rs 1.20 lakh, the company said.
The other key features include a mid-drive motor along with a removable battery and futuristic design. It also comes with smart features like a touch screen, on-board navigation, bluetooth, among others, Simple Energy said.

Clocr raises $500K in seed funding round

Digital vault service startup Clocr has raised more than $500,000 as a part of its seed funding round, as the company looks to expand its footprint in the country.

Clocr is also looking to expand its global footprint and hire teams in different geographies and provide B2B integrations across various verticals, the firm said. Substantial funds from the new infusion will be spent on sales and marketing.

The SaaS platform allows users to organise their digital assets including all accounts (social media and others) and files, identify heirs, and provide these access to the digital legacies of their loved ones, a company statement said.
Through its solution, Clockr allows people to set up, manage, efficiently organise their digital assets, files, and pass on all digital assets in a safe and legal way, in case of an emergency or death.

Covid-19 Initiatives:

Rapido partners with ecommerce players for Covid relief

Rapido has announced a partnership with major essential suppliers such as Zomato, Swiggy, BigBasket, Delhivery, Grab, Xpressbees, and Udaan for aiding last-mile deliveries.

These partnerships are live across cities such as Delhi NCR, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, and others. Rapido says it will support these partners in the delivery of medicines, essential groceries, and food from restaurants.

Walmart announces Covid relief initiatives in India

Walmart on Friday said it is mobilizing its global resources to further expand support for COVID-19 relief efforts in India, and added that the company, along with the Walmart Foundation, Flipkart and PhonePe, are collaborating to counter oxygen shortages, support the national vaccination drive and donate to organizations.

Walmart Foundation is donating $2 million, of which $1 Million will go to the Walmart Foundation Disaster Relief Fund, and another $1 mn to support GiveIndia’s COVID response fund.

Facebook to launch Vaccine FInder tool in India

Facebook says it is partnering with the Indian Government to roll out a Vaccine Finder tool on the Facebook mobile app in India this week. The tool will be available in 17 languages to help people identify places nearby to get the vaccine.

Facebook says the Vaccine Finder tool will show vaccine centre locations and hours of operation, as provided by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. It will also show walk-in options (for 46 years and above) and a link to register on the CoWin website and schedule appointments.

Flipkart partners with Give India to supply life-saving equipment to charitable hospitals, COVID-19 centres

Ecommerce firm Flipkart to collaborate with Give India Foundation to provide life-saving equipment to charitable hospitals, COVID-19 centres, and healthcare workers fighting against the second wave.

It will supply oxygen, N-95 masks, PPE kits, hand sanitisers, vaccinations and essential care at COVID-19 centres, charitable hospitals and for healthcare workers in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru.

OYO Rooms launches initiative for self-isolation

Hospitality company OYO Rooms has announced the OYO Care Initiative for self-isolation of Covid-19 patients in a bid to reduce the burden on healthcare workers, patients’ families & contain the spread of the virus, the company said.
Currently available in Delhi-NCR, it plans to expand the service across India, founder Ritesh Agarwal said in a tweet.

Apple joins Google and Microsoft to support India’s fight against COVID-19

Apple has become the latest multinational company after Google and Microsoft to have extended its support to India in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Apple CEO Tim Cook took to Twitter to announce his support. “Amid a devastating rise of COVID cases in India, our thoughts are with the medical workers, our Apple family and everyone there who is fighting through this awful stage of the pandemic. Apple will be donating to support and relief efforts on the ground,” he said.

Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google and Alphabet, has also pledged Rs 135 crore to support high-risk communities and grants to help spread critical information about the deadly virus.

Similarly, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella offered his support, saying his company would “continue to use its voice, resources, and technology to aid relief efforts, and support the purchase of critical oxygen concentration devices.” Microsoft India had earlier funded two Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi-led project on COVID-19 detection last year in May.

Meanwhile, CEOs of about 40 top American companies have come together for a first-of-its-kind country-specific global task force to gather resources and coordinate efforts to help India fight the battle against COVID-19, according to reports.

Many more business tycoons and organizations, including Nischal Shetty, Founder and CEO of WazirXIndia, Open-source blockchain software Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, and cryptocurrency legend Balaji Srinivasa have also pledged their support to India as it fights a ravaging virus.

Former Coinbase CTO Srinivasan has donated $50,000 in cryptocurrency and Buterin has also transferred cryptocurrency worth more than $600,000 for India’s fight against COVID-19.

In global news,

Amazon reports strong quarter

Few companies have benefited from the pandemic-fueled surge of online shopping as much as Amazon. Its first-quarter results showed the company’s business continues to be buoyed by the pandemic, with sales soaring 44% year over year to $108.5 billion.
Amazon said that its market-leading cloud business grew revenue 32% in the first quarter, a faster pace than analysts had expected and accelerating from 28% growth in the fourth quarter.

Facebook blows past revenue estimates but warns Apple policy change could hobble growth

Facebook Inc beat Wall Street expectations for both quarterly revenue and profit but warned that growth later this year could ”significantly” decline as new Apple Inc privacy policies will make it more difficult to target ads.

The world’s largest social network, whose shares rose 6.5 percent in extended trading, has blasted Apple over its requirement that iPhone app developers begin asking users’ permission to collect certain data for ads. Facebook says the change would harm its business and hurt small companies that rely on personalized advertising.

At the same time, it has built shopping and e-commerce features within Facebook and Instagram, which are expected to bring additional revenue to the company and make its ad inventory more valuable.Total revenue, which primarily consists of ad sales, rose 48 percent to USD 26.17 billion in the first quarter ended March 31, beating analysts’ average estimate of USD 23.67 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Apple soars past sales, profit targets with strong iPhone demand, warns of chip shortages

Apple Inc posted sales and profits far ahead of Wall Street expectations and announced a USD 90 billion share buyback as customers continued to upgrade to 5G iPhones but warned that supply constraints from a global chip shortage would cost it billions in revenue in the current quarter, hitting Macs and iPads.Sales to China nearly doubled and results topped analyst targets in every category, led by USD 6.5 billion more in iPhone sales than predicted and Mac sales about a third higher than estimates. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said the company sees an economic recovery coming.

Tesla posts $438 million Q1 profit on strong electric vehicle sales

Charged up by strong sales of its electric cars and SUVs, Tesla posted its seventh-straight profitable quarter. The company made $ 438 million in the three-month period that ended March 31, as sales more than doubled the same period last year to nearly 185,000 vehicles. All but 2,000 of the sales were lower-priced Model 3 sedans and Model Y SUVs.

Tesla said it didn’t produce any of its higher-priced Model S sedans and Model X SUVs as it switched to new versions during the quarter.

The Palo Alto, California, company faces challenges as it tries to reach its second-straight annual profit this year. There’s a global shortage of semiconductors that is forcing automakers to idle factories, and Tesla is facing renewed scrutiny of its Autopilot partially automated driving system after two men died in a crash earlier this month near Houston.

Excluding stock-based compensation and non-recurring items, Tesla made 93 cents per share. That beat Wall Street estimates of 75 cents per share, according to analysts polled by data provider FactSet.

First-quarter revenue of $10.39 billion fell just shy of the $10.48 billion expected by analysts. Once again the company needed regulatory credits purchased by other automakers in order to make a profit. Without $ 518 million in credits for the quarter, Tesla would have lost money. Other automakers buy the credits when they can’t meet emissions and fuel economy standards.

Tesla said adjusted net income, excluding stock-based compensation, passed $1 billion for the first time in company history.

Alphabet sets profit record, plans $50 billion buyback

Google parent Alphabet Inc on Tuesday reported record profit for the second consecutive quarter and a $50 billion share buyback but warned a surge in usage and ad sales during the pandemic may slow as people resume in-person activities.

With online consumer activity remaining elevated in the first quarter, Alphabet beat analysts’ revenue estimates and nearly surpassed the sales record it set in the fourth quarter.

Google ad sales jumped 32 percent in the first quarter compared with a year ago, above expectations of analysts tracked by Refinitiv. Cloud sales increased 45.7 percent, in line with estimates.

Alphabet shares rose about 4.3 percent to $2,390.10 in extended trading.
The results provided the first sign that Google services such as search and YouTube may hold on to gains made since lockdowns and other pandemic restrictions forced people to shop and communicate online over the last year.

About 17 percent of people in the United States, Alphabet’s top region by revenue, were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of the first quarter.

Activities including in-person dining resumed in big cities in March, and security screenings at US airports had their busiest day in a year.

But Alphabet Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat told analysts on Tuesday, “It’s too early to forecast the extent to which these changes in consumer behavior and advertising spend will endure.”

Google Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler and Porat declined to comment on whether Google had seen a recovery in spending by travel and other industries that were major customers before the pandemic.

Alphabet’s overall quarterly sales rose 34 percent to $55.3 billion, above analysts’ estimate of 26 percent growth from a year ago and close to the $56.9 billion it reported in the fourth quarter. Revenue benefited by an unspecified amount from Google’s acquisition of smartwatch maker Fitbit in January.

Alphabet’s quarterly profit was $17.9 billion, or $26.29 per share, beating estimates of $15.88 per share and topping its previous high of $15.2 billion last quarter.

But nearly $4 billion of earnings came from unrealized gains in venture capital investments and recalculating depreciation of some data center equipment.

The high sales pushed operating margins up to 30 percent for the first time since incorporating as Alphabet in 2015 even as its costs began to pick up again for hiring, legal matters, and building out new facilities.

Alphabet in 2020 suffered its slowest sales growth in 11 years but posted record profit and boosted its cash hoard by $17 billion after slowing hiring and construction.

The share repurchase authorization by Alphabet’s board follows a $25 billion buyback program announced in 2019. Jefferies analyst Brent Thill estimated Alphabet now has $56 billion left to spend buying its shares.

Microsoft books biggest revenue growth since 2018

Microsoft announced fiscal third-quarter earnings and quarterly revenue guidance that came in stronger than analysts had expected. The company’s operating margin narrowed somewhat as cloud became a larger part of its business.

The software & hardwarw giant clocked a revenue of $41.71 billion in the quarter; a 19% annualized growth, according to a statement. That’s the biggest quarterly increase the company has posted since 2018, thanks in part to gains in PC sales resulting from coronavirus-driven shortages last year, as per CNBC.

The company said its Azure public cloud, which competes with market leader Amazon Web Services, grew 50%, faster than the 46% growth analysts had expected, according to a CNBC review of 14 equity research notes. In the prior quarter Azure revenue grew 50%. Microsoft does not disclose Azure revenue in dollars.

With respect to guidance, Microsoft is expecting $43.6 billion to $44.5 billion in revenue in the fiscal fourth quarter, said Amy Hood, Microsoft’s finance chief, on a conference call with analysts. At the middle of the range that would represent 16% growth, more than the $42.98 billion consensus estimate among analysts polled by Refinitiv.

WhatsApp tests chat migration feature for Android devices

Instant messaging app WhatsApp is working on a new feature for Android devices that will allow users to migrate chat history between iOS and Android devices, according to WABetaInfo. The feature would let users transfer their chat history between devices when switching phones.

According to the WABetaInfo, WhatsApp beta version for Android 2.21.9.7 update screenshots shows that the company is working on a chat migration feature.

The website, known for testing WhatsApp features before they are made available for a full release, said that while it was not clear how the chat migration feature would work, it is most likely that a cloud service like Google Drive will be used to store the history before importing it to the new device. WhatsApp already uses Google Drive to store chat backups, if selected through the app setting.

In an earlier report, WABetaInfo had mentioned that WhatsApp was developing the chat migration feature for iOS devices.

WhatsApp is also working on a feature that will allow messages to ‘disappear’ after 24 hours, similar to the already existing disappearing messages that remove messages 7 days after they were sent.

WhatsApp, owned by Facebook, has recently faced tough competition from other instant messaging apps like Telegram and Signal, which were capitalising on the widespread backlash to WhatsApp’s new privacy policy and terms of use.

Mark Zuckerberg announces new revenue options for Instagram Creators

Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, on Tuesday, announced new features that will open up new revenue streams for Instagram creators. The slew of features includes a creator marketplace where brands can pick and choose creators who connect better with their brand’s target audience. There will also be an improved influencer marketplace to connect users and brands.

Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram, said that many creators already rely on sponsored posts from brands to make a living on the platform but the marketplace will be a way for Instagram to help brands and creators find each other more easily, a CNBC report mentioned.

Zuckerberg and Mosseri made their announcement over a video broadcast on Instagram Live together. Instagram has not released a timeline of when these features are expected to roll out.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

JCB India temporarily suspends manufacturing operations from May 1

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Earthmoving and construction equipment major JCB India on Friday said it will temporarily suspend operations for 10 days across its manufacturing facilities in the wake of the surge in COVID-19 cases.

The company will pause manufacturing operations starting from May 1 across the plants located at Ballabgarh, Jaipur and Pune.

“Due to an increase in the infection rate around us, the health and safety of our colleagues and their families have become even more important. We have decided to pause manufacturing operations for 10 days, starting on May 1, 2021.

“This is a precautionary measure and applies to all our manufacturing locations at Ballabgarh, Pune and Jaipur,” JCB India CEO and managing director Deepak Shetty said in a statement.

With the surge of cases in the second wave of the pandemic, Shetty said it is important to break the chain of the infection.

Most of our employees in our offices are already working from home and this temporary pause of manufacturing activities will further help in lowering the active number of cases in and around our manufacturing facilities,” he added.

Stating that sufficient inventory levels have been built to support the demand for its products during this period, Shetty said, “We do not foresee any challenges in the availability of JCB products for our customers in India or for our export markets”.

All customer and dealer-facing functions of the company will operate normally while adhering to local guidelines, he said, adding “There will be no disruption in product support for equipment being used by our customers due to this pause”.

Automobile makers Hero MotoCorp, Maruti Suzuki India and MG Motors have already announced the temporary suspension of operations at their manufacturing facilities in the wake of the rise in COVID-19 cases across the country.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

COVID-19: Haryana imposes weekend lockdown in 9 districts till May 3

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

The Haryana government imposed a weekend lockdown on Friday in nine districts of the state in the light of rising COVID-19 cases. The lockdown will be imposed in the districts of Panchkula, Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Rohtak, Karnal, Hisar, Sirsa, and Fatehabad. The lockdown will be effective from 10 pm on Friday (April 30) to 5 am on Monday (May 3).

“The COVID-19 pandemic is again posing a threat to public health, so the government of Haryana has considered it necessary to take effective measures to prevent its spread in the state of Haryana. In exercise of the powers under the Disaster Management Act 2005, the undersigned in my capacity as Chairperson, State Executive Committee, hereby issues the following directions for nine districts of the state — Panchkula, Gurugram. Faridabad. Sonipat, Rohtak, Karnal. Hisar, Sirsa and Fatehabad. There will be a weekend lockdown starting from 10 pm on 30.04.2021 (Friday) till 5 am on 03.04.2021 (Monday),” read the order.

What’s closed till May 31?

Colleges, coaching institutions, Industrial Training Institutes, libraries and training institutes, both government and private, will remain closed till May 31. Child and mother care centres like Anganwadi centres and crèches under the state Women and Child Development Department will remain closed till May 31.

कोरोना के बढ़ते मामलों को देखते हुए हरियाणा के 9 जिलों पंचकूला, गुरुग्राम, फरीदाबाद, सोनीपत, रोहतक, करनाल, फतेहाबाद, हिसार व सिरसा में आज रात 10 बजे से 3 मई सुबह 5 बजे तक वीकेंड लॉकडाउन की घोषणा की गई है। pic.twitter.com/BEbGJQ9eT2

— CMO Haryana (@cmohry) April 30, 2021

What’s allowed?

According to the order, the officials tasked with law and order/emergencies and municipal services/duties, including executive magistrates, police personnel, military/ CAPF personnel in uniform, health, electricity, fire, media persons with accreditation and government machinery tasked with COVID-19 related duties, on producing valid identity cards, will be allowed movement during the lockdown period.

Travel for appearing in examination and those on examination duties on production of admit/identity cards will be allowed. There will be no curbs on those engaged in manufacturing essential goods.

Inter-state and intra-state movement of essential and non-essential goods will be allowed during the weekend lockdown.

Hospitals, veterinary hospitals and all related medical establishments, including their manufacturing and distribution units, both in public and private sectors, such as dispensaries, chemists, pharmacies and medical equipment shops, laboratories, pharmaceutical research labs, clinics, nursing homes, ambulances etc. will continue to remain functional.

Transportation for all medical personnel, nurses, para-medical staff, and other hospital support services will be permitted.

Essential services like telecommunications, internet services, broadcasting and cable services, IT and IT enabled services, and delivery of all essential goods, including food, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment through e-commerce, will remain operational.

Farming operations by farmers and farm workers in the field, private security services and ATMs will be allowed to operate during the lockdown.

The order also stated that those defying the lockdown would be punishable under the relevant provisions of the Disaster Management Act and the IPC. The order comes after Haryana saw its biggest single-day spike, with 13,497 new COVID-19 cases and 97 deaths in the last 24 hours.

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HDFC Bank’s CEO Sashi Jagdishan announces top management rejig

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The country’s top private lender, HDFC Bank on Friday announced a major organisational change, reshuffling the portfolios of its core team. This is the first major rejig under the new managing director, Sashidhar Jagdishan, who succeeded the bank’s long-time head, Aditya Puri, in October last year.

HDFC Bank has reorganised itself into three clear areas of business verticals, delivery channels and technology / digital, under \”Project Future – Ready” to power its next wave of growth, the bank said in a statement. “The creation of focused business verticals and delivery channels will enable it to capitalise on the opportunities across customer segments in the time to come,” HDFC Bank said.

Also read: What does Citigroup’s exit from retail banking mean?

“We are creating engines of growth with top-tier talent backed by technology and digital transformation to capitalise on opportunities that will accrue in the coming time,” said Jagdishan. “They are in our mind Future – Ready teams. I am sure this structure will create the necessary strategic and execution agility that we need to serve our customers across India & Bharat, Retail, Commercial (MSME) and Corporate segments.”

Portfolio Reshuffle

The bank’s executive director Kaizad Bharucha will continue to head wholesale bank, including corporate banking group, capital and commodities markets group and financial Institutions.

Rahul Shyam Shukla, currently the group head – wholesale banking, will now head commercial banking (MSME) and the rural vertical.

Smita Bhagat, currently country head of government and institutional business, e-commerce, and start-ups, will continue to head govt/institutional banking, and also drive the expansion of the bank’s rural presence, as well as the start-up sector.

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Arvind Kapil, currently country head – retail assets at HDFC Bank will continue to head retail assets portfolio.

Rakesh Singh, currently the group head – investment banking and private banking- will now also be responsible for marketing, retail liability products, and managed programmes.

Parag Rao, currently country head – payments, consumer finance, digital banking, and marketing, will now drive the technology transformation and digital agenda and payments vertical. Ramesh Lakshminarayanan, chief information officer, and Anjani Rathor, chief digital officer will report to Rao.

Ravi Santhanam, currently the bank’s chief marketing officer, will now also be responsible for driving digital marketing as a stand-alone delivery channel. Santhanam will additionally be responsible for the retail liability products and managed programmes at the bank.

Also read: Banking sector trends: Incremental deposits for a single financial year at record high

Sampath Kumar, currently the group head – liability products, third party products, and non-resident business, will now be in charge of all tele-service relationships, including VRM delivery channel of the bank.

Arvind Vohra, group head – retail branch banking, retail trade and forex to continue to drive the efforts to expand through branch banking.

Ashish Parthasarathy- group head, treasury and GIB will now also be responsible for the tele-service/sales/relationship channel.

Bhavesh Zaveri, group head – operations, will continue to handle the entire operations of the bank, and additionally, be responsible for the entire ATM channel operations across the country.

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“The bank will re-double its efforts on its business verticals that include Corporate Banking, Retail Banking, Private Banking, Government and Institutional Banking, Retail assets and Payments. In addition, the Bank is increasing its focus on Commercial Banking (MSME vertical), the backbone of the Indian economy. This would enable the Bank to bring its product and digital might to the entire Commercial Banking (MSME community) in a much more holistic and focused manner across Bharat & India,” HDFC Bank said in its late evening statement to the media.

It added that the credit, risk, and control functions would also remain with the current leadership as part of its “Project Future Ready” transformation.

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Resurgent BJP in Bengal could spell doom for TMC and Left, says Bhaumik

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The exit polls in West Bengal point towards a dead heat between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP. Meanwhile, most exit polls give the edge to the BJP in Assam. Avishek Datta Roy catches up with veteran BBC & Reuters correspondent Subir Bhaumik, and in a freewheeling conversation discusses the Left, Right & the Centre of Bengal politics, the factors that could work for the BJP in Bengal and why the absence of Tarun Gogoi may hurt the Congress.

Q: Do you see an affinity on the part of the Bengal voters to align themselves with a party at the Centre as they feel they would benefit more from Central schemes?

A: The BJP is the first national party to make a serious effort to wrest power in Bengal after 1977, the year Congress lost out. After 1977, for various different reasons, the Congress lost interest in Bengal. Except for a brief span in 1984, when the sympathy votes after Indira Gandhi’s assassination led to a Congress surge in the Parliament polls, the Congress really wasn’t trying to make a dent and challenge the Left. The Left in Bengal is more of a regional formation, though by intent it’s a national political front. This is the first time that we see a national political party making a strong effort, putting everything in the Bengal polls.

Many are saying the Left lost out because of the Singur and Nandigram episodes, but that is not quite right. Singur and Nandigram did have an impact on the rural and the poor voters in Bengal. But why did the urban Bengali go against the Left? Because of the CPI(M)’s policy of having power in the state but not at the central level.

The only reason why Mamata Banerjee started making an impact in Bengal was her ability to align with the central parties. She first aligned with the BJP, then with the Congress. She became a minister along with others. They brought central schemes to Bengal like the Congress’ Ajit Panja and Ghani Khan Chowdhury had done. For quite some time now sizeable numbers of Bengalis have been feeling that they should have a connect with the people in power in Centre, for the interest of Bengal. So that’s definitely a factor favouring BJP.

Q: The Left and the Congress did not have an alliance for 2016 polls. This time, they contested the state polls as partners. Is the alliance really working? Do you not think this alliance is having a demoralising effect on both Congress and Left cadres, given that they share a history of animosity?

A: The vote swing that took place from ‘Baam (Left) to Ram’ was primarily because of TMC’s very tough anti-Left actions post-2011. Many Leftist cadres felt Dilip Ghosh (now BJP Bengal President) was a better bet than Surya Kanta Mishra or Biman Bose (senior CPM politburo members), when it came to their personal security. They felt that Ghosh could at least make some phone calls and be taken seriously by the local police.

Mobilisation is also an important factor in Bengal. The Left has been able to mobilise this time. The Congress is a party that looks to Delhi. The Left has a young brigade which has made a real impact in campaigning. The Left leaders have told their cadres, “we fought the Naxalites in 1971, Siddhartha Shankar Ray came, blasted us out and formed his govt. If BJP comes to power now, they will hit us, because they see us as an ideological opponent.” I feel that Bengal Leftists know that they have a chance at revival. Another TMC government will provide them that kind of a chance. A resurgent BJP coming to power will hit both TMC and the Left.

Q: Let’s know focus on Assam. The exit polls are indicating that the BJP might retain power. This, even after some disgruntlement over the BJP’s NRC-CAA plan. Has the Congress failed to capitalise or project a strong CM candidate after the death of Tarun Gogoi?

A: I think the fight in Assam is going to be tight. After Tarun Gogoi, Congress doesn’t really have a leader. The Congress and the Badruddin Ajmal’s party AIUDF have formed alliance. The BJP knows that this is a recipe for trouble. In the last elections, this alliance was non-existent with Congress and AIUDF in two different boxes. There is a consolidation of the Muslim vote and a possible loss of a section of the Assamese votes. The BJP’s campaign has been very focussed on the point that Congress doesn’t have a big enough leader. If it comes to power, Ajmal is going to be the de facto CM of Assam. That’s something the ethnic Assamese are jittery about.

Q: If Mamata were to retain power, do you see Abhishek Banerjee being inducted into the government?

Subir Bhaumik: Abhishek Banerjee has been made into a larger-than-life leader by the BJP propaganda. He is still not as big as a lot of people think he is. Seasoned politicians like Firhad Hakim and Partha Chatterjee are far ahead in the pecking order. If the TMC margin of victory is slender, Mamata will still have to watch her back as the BJP can do something similar to what they did in Madhya Pradesh.

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Redmi Note 10S India launch teased; Here’s what we know

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Redmi India on April 30 hinted at the launch of a new smartphone in the country without revealing the name of the new device. The official tweet suggests the new phone to be launched in India could be the Redmi Note 10S.

“Brace yourselves folks, there’s going to be a new player in town! We’re dropping hints but are you #savage enough to spot ’em! Ready, set, go! Don’t forget to RT if you think you got them all right,” Redmi India tweeted.

Brace yourselves folks, there’s going to be a new player in town!

We’re dropping hints but are you #savage enough to spot ’em! 😉

Ready, set, go! Don’t forget to RT if you think you got them all right. 🎮 pic.twitter.com/1loAhwpdax

— Redmi India – #RedmiNote10 Series (@RedmiIndia) April 30, 2021

Tell-all teaser

Many speculated it to be Redmi Note 10S as the teased specifications were similar to the phone that was launched last month globally.

The tweet from Redmi India has an image of a unique retail box with several features of the smartphone printed on it. The box indicates the upcoming phone will have a 64MP camera, high-resolution audio, and three colour options of blue, grey and black. The Redmi Note 10S has all the features mentioned in the box.

The photo teaser also shows other key specifications like super display, MIUI 12.5, gaming-centric, and ‘blazing-fast.’

Gadgets 360 also mentioned a recent leak, suggesting that the Redmi Note 10S will come to India in three storage configurations — 6GB + 64GB, 6GB + 128GB, and 8GB + 128GB.

Xiaomi has already launched three models in the Redmi Note 10 series in India — Redmi Note 10, Redmi Note 10 Pro, and Redmi Note 10 Pro Max. Redmi Note 10S available globally runs on Android 11-based MIUI 12.5 and features a 6.43-inch full HD+ (1,080×2,400 pixels) AMOLED hole-punch display. It packs a 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging.

The Redmi Note 10S has a quad-camera setup — a 64-megapixel (MP) main camera, 8-MP ultra-wide, 2-MP macro sensor and a 2-MP depth sensor. In the front, the phone has a 13MP sensor. The phone also has a side fingerprint sensor and supports an AI face unlock, according to Gadgets 360.

Expected Price in India

Redmi India has not yet indicated the expected price of the new phone in India. However, considering the specifications, the starting price of the Redmi Note 10S in India is expected to be slightly higher than Redmi Note 10. The Redmi Note 10 is available in India at a starting price of Rs 12,499.

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Samir Seksaria new CFO of TCS as V Ramakrishnan retires

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Friday announced that Samir Seksaria will take over as the company’s Chief Financial Officer on May 1, 2021. He replaces V Ramakrishnan, well known as ‘Ramki’ in the IT industry, who will be retiring from the services effective April 30, 2021.

The Board of Directors, at its meeting held on April 12, 2021, had appointed Samir Seksaria as Chief Financial Officer.

He started his career in TCS in 1999 and spent his early years in consulting assignments involving regulatory compliance and M&A spin-offs, among others. Prior to being appointed as CFO, he was heading the financial analytics, planning and business finance functions.

“I am pleased to welcome Samir in his new role. During the past two decades, Samir has played an exemplary role in the company’s financial transformation journey involving simplification, cash management, planning and forecasting, and contract structuring,” said Rajesh Gopinathan, CEO & MD, TCS.

“We thank Ramki for his invaluable contributions to the organization, and wish him well for the future.”

“I am truly honored to be offered the role of Chief Financial Officer. I am thankful to the Board and the management for giving me this position of responsibility. I look forward to working closely with our clients, partners, business units and associates towards creating value for all our stakeholders as TCS powers ahead in its journey of transformative growth,” said Samir Seksaria.

The company generated consolidated revenues of US $22.2 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021.

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Huawei to make EVs, in talks to acquire Chinese automaker: Report

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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China’s Huawei Technologies is in talks to take control of a small domestic automaker Chongqing Sokon’s electric vehicle (EV) unit, news agency Reuters reported quoting a source. This would be a strategic shift for the world’s largest telecom equipment maker,

Huawei will acquire a controlling stake in the automaker’s Chongqing Jinkang New Energy Automobile, the report said. It added that the move will enable Huawei, which has been battered by US sanctions, to make intelligent cars bearing its own nameplate, the report mentioned.

According to the Reuters report, the acquisition would be the first sign that Huawei is eyeing beyond just offering auto operating systems and looking to have an end-to-end presence in the EV business.

If the deal is finalised, it would mark a major shift in business focus for the telecom giant after two years of the US sanctions that have cut off its access to key supply chains, forcing it to sell a part of its smartphone business, the report added.

Huawei’s foray into EVs comes at a time when technology firms like Xiaomi Corporation are investing in China, the world’s biggest market for such vehicles, as the country heavily promotes greener vehicles to cut carbon emissions.

Huawei also plans to acquire a stake in privately-owned Chongqing Sokon Holdings, the biggest shareholder of Shanghai-listed Sokon, the report said, adding that the company is looking to finalise the deal as soon as July.

Sales of new energy vehicles are estimated to make up 20 percent of China’s overall annual auto sales by 2025, according to the Reuters report.  Huawei aims to launch the first intelligent car under its own brand for mass production at the earliest by the end of this year.

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Market Unplugged Podcast: Why market is holding up in the face of bad news all around

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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In the first episode of CNBC-TV18.com’s Market Unplugged Podcast, Editor Santosh Nair chats with CNBC-TV18 National News Editor Prashant Nair on what is keeping the market firm despite the mayhem being unleashed by the second wave of COVID.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that insurance companies have been among the big buyers even as mutual funds and foreign institutional investors have turned cautious.

In this podcast, Prashant posits on why banking stocks continue to find takers despite the sector being most vulnerable to a slowdown in the economy, and why metal and pharma stocks are likely to be in limelight near term.

Tune-in to the Market Unplugged podcast for more.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow