Month: June 2022

Sebi penalises Kotak Mahindra Trustee Company, Kotak AMC’s chief Nilesh Shah, 5 others

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

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Capital markets regulator Sebi on Thursday slapped penalties totalling Rs 1.6 crore on seven entities, including Kotak Mahindra Trustee Company and managing director of Kotak AMC Nilesh Shah, for flouting rules pertaining to mutual funds while investing in Essel Group companies.

Others penalised by Sebi are Kotak AMC’s fund managers — Lakshmi Iyer, Deepak Agarwal, Abhishek Bisen — Compliance Officer Jolly Bhatt and Gaurang Shah, who was one of the members of the investment committee that approved the investment decisions related to certain Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) schemes, as per the order.

They have been directed to pay the penalties within 45 days. The case pertains to six FMP schemes that matured in April and May 2019, which held investments in debt securities issued by Edisons Utility Works Pvt Ltd and Konti Infrapower & Multiventures Pvt Ltd, belonging to the Essel Group. The debt securities were secured by pledge of equity shares of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd by its promoter Cyquator Media Services.

Also Read: SEBI fines NSE Rs 7 crore, Chitra Ramkrishna Rs 5 crore in ‘dark fibre’ case

Further, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company (AMC) entered into an agreement with promoters and other promoter entities of Essel Group to extend the maturity of securities of various Essel Group entities to September 30, 2019. Consequently, investors of all the six schemes were not paid full amount on maturity based on the Net Asset Value of the schemes.

Sebi found that Kotak Mahindra Trustee Company, being a trustee of Kotak AMC, failed to disclose scheme-related information, particularly regarding the adverse situation related to Essel Group companies, to its unitholders accurately and in a timely manner, despite being aware of the same since January 2019.

According to Sebi, information of Essel promoters not providing additional cover when the margin call triggered and the decision of AMC and trustees to extend the maturity of the securities, all being information having adverse bearing on the investments of investors were not communicated to the investors when the events took place.

Also Read: Stockbrokers must report any tech breach within six hours — this and other diktats by SEBI

“Lapses and violations have been observed on the part of the noticees (seven entities) with regard to lack of due diligence and consequently negligence while investing in Essel Group companies as well as with regard to maturity date of the security exceeding the maturity date schemes, the six FMP schemes… and not being wound up at the end of their maturities and being partially redeemed at the end of their maturity dates,” Sebi said in the 104-page order.

Further, it observed non-compliance with principles of fair valuation while valuing the debt securities or Zero Coupon Non Convertible Debenture (ZCNCDs) of the issuers, and inadequate disclosures to investors of the six FMP schemes by these entities. According to the regulator, interests of the investors has been affected negatively on account of the infractions on the part of the noticees.

Accordingly, Sebi imposed a fine of Rs 40 lakh on Kotak Mahindra Trustee Company, Nilesh Shah (Rs 30 lakh), Iyer (Rs 25 lakh), Agarwal (Rs 20 lakh), Bhatt (Rs 10 lakh), Bisen (Rs 15 lakh) and Gaurang Shah (Rs 20 lakh).

The order came after Sebi noticed that the investors of certain FMPs launched by the Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund were not paid their full proceeds based on the declared NAV of the said schemes as on their respective maturity dates.

Also Read: SEBI allows foreign portfolio investors to invest in commodity derivatives market

In August 2021, Sebi had asked the AMC to refund a part of the investment management and advisory fees collected from the unit holders of the six FMP schemes with 15 percent interest per annum.

In addition, the regulator had restrained Kotak AMC from launching any new fixed-maturity plans for six months and imposed a penalty of Rs 50 lakh on the fund house in the matter. Later in October that year, the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) partly stayed the Sebi order.

“The direction to refund a part of the investment management and advisory fees collected by the appellant (Kotak Mahindra AMC) from the unit holders shall remain stayed,” as per the SAT order.

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

Bharti Airtel defers Rs 3,000 crore FY18, FY19 AGR dues for 4 years

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

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Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Thursday said it will defer the payment of the AGR (Adjusted Gross Revenue) dues up to FY 2018-19 which are not tabulated in the Supreme Court order, by up to four years.

However, the company has retained the right to pre-pay installment amounts and would not avail the option of conversion of the interest dues that would accrue into equity.

Sources at the company said the amount of dues add up to about Rs 3,000 crore for the additional years.

Also Read: Google cleared to buy 1.28% stake in Bharti Airtel

“We wish to inform you that the company has informed to DoT (Department of Telecom) that the company shall avail the option to defer the payment of the AGR (Adjusted Gross Revenue) dues up to FY 2018-19 which are not tabulated in the Hon’ble Supreme Court order, up to four years (applicable from FY 2021-22 to FY 2024-25) while retaining the right to pre-pay the installment amounts,” Bharti Airtel said in a regulatory filing.

Airtel said DoT had offered the option of a four-year moratorium (applicable from FY 2021-22 to FY 2024-25) for AGR dues up to FY 2018-19 which are not tabulated in the Supreme Court order pertaining to statutory dues as well as for the conversion of the interest dues that accrue into equity.

The government calculates its share of the revenue from telecom operators based on their AGR, which is considered to have been earned by them from the sale of services. Last week, debt-ridden telecom operator Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) decided to defer payment of additional AGR dues of Rs 8,837 crore by a period of four years.

Also Read: Explained: Private 5G networks and why telecom operators don’t like them

In a filing on June 22, the company said DoT, on June 15, raised AGR demand for additional two financial years beyond 2016-17, which were not covered under the Supreme Court order on the statutory dues. VIL had mentioned that its board of directors “has approved the exercise of the option of deferment of the AGR related dues by a period of four years with immediate effect, in accordance with the said DoT letter”.

“The amount of the AGR-related dues as stated in the said DoT letter is Rs 8,837 crore, which is subject to revision on account of disposal of various representations,” it had said.

Telecom service providers had got a shot in the arm with the government last year approving a blockbuster relief package that included a four-year break for companies from paying statutory dues, permission to share scarce airwaves, change in the definition of revenue on which levies are paid and 100 percent foreign investment through the automatic route.

Also Read: 5G Auction: Telcos likely to buy spectrum worth up to Rs 1 lakh crore

According to official data, telecom operators owe over Rs 1.65 lakh crore to the government in adjusted gross revenue up to the financial year 2018-19.

The fresh calculation shows total AGR liability on Bharti Airtel is Rs 31,280 crore, Vodafone Idea Rs 59,236.63 crore, Tata Group Rs 12,931.63 crore, Reliance Jio Rs 631 crore, BSNL Rs 16,224 crore and MTNL Rs 5,009.1 crore up to the financial year 2018-19.

Most of the telecom operators have made part payment of AGR demand raised till the fiscal year 2016-17. Bharti Airtel had an outstanding of Rs 25,976 crore, VIL Rs 50,399.63 crore, Tata Group companies 12,600.63 crore, BSNL Rs 5,835.85 crore, and MTNL Rs 4,352.09 crore as of March 31, 2021.

The demand was also raised for some of the telecom companies like Sistema Shyam, Etisalat DB Telecom, S Tel, Reliance Communications etc that have shut down their telecom services business.

Shares of Bharti Airtel ended at Rs 684.40, down by Rs 3.10, or 0.45 percent on the BSE.

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

Fadnavis is fourth former Maharashtra CM to accept junior post in another government

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

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Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday became the fourth Maharashtra politician who accepted a junior position in a government after having served as chief minister. Fadnavis, earlier in the day, made a stunning announcement that rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde would be sworn in as the new chief minister following the collapse of the Uddhav Thackery government, and he himself would not be part of the ministry.

But later BJP chief J P Nadda said Fadnavis would be part of the government and eventually Fadnavis took oath as Shinde’s deputy. Fadnavis was chief minister for full five years from 2014 to 2019. After the 2019 Assembly elections, as the Sena fell out with the BJP, Fadnavis became chief minister again with the support of a group of NCP MLAs led by Ajit Pawar, but had to resign within three days as they could not muster the numbers.

A former chief minister accepting a junior post in a subsequent government is rare, but Maharashtra has witnessed such situation in the past.

Also read: Eknath Shinde sworn in as Maharashtra chief minister, Fadnavis will be his deputy

Congress leader Shankarrao Chavan became chief minister in 1975 and served for two years, before being replaced by Vasantdada Patil.In 1978, Sharad Pawar, a minister in Patil cabinet, brought down the government and became chief minister. Chavan became finance minister in the Progressive Democratic Front government led by Pawar.

Shivajirao Patil Nilangekar was the chief minister of Maharashtra from June 1985 to March 1986. Years later, he became revenue minister in the Sushilkumar Shinde government in 2004. Narayan Rane, then with the Shiv Sena, became Maharashtra Chief Minister in 1999 and served for less than a year. Later, after he had left the Sena to join the Congress, he became revenue minister in the Vilasrao Deshmukh-led government.

Also read: Catch LIVE updates of the Maharashtra political crisis here

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

This bank hikes base rate by 25 bps effective from July 1. Check latest rates here

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

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State-owned Punjab National Bank (PNB) on Thursday has revised the base rate by 25 basis points (bps) across tenors with effect from July 1, 2022.

As per the regulatory filing, the base rate will be at 8.75 percent from the current 8.50 percent.

The bank has hiked the MCLR for an overnight loan from 6.75 percent to 6.90 percent whereas the MCLR for a one-month loan now stands at 6.95 percent.

Also Read: Rupee could sink all the way to 80 a dollar soon. Here’s why

MCLR for three-month, six-month, and one-year loans stand at 7.05 percent, 7.25 percent, and 7.55 percent, respectively. The lending rate for three-year loans, however, stands at 7.85 percent.

Prior to this hike, MCLR rates stood at 6.75 percent (overnight), 6.80 percent (one month), 6.90 percent (three months), 7.10 percent (six months), 7.40 percent (one year), and 7.70 percent (three years).

However, there is no change in Repo Linked Loan Rate (RLLR).

Also Read: Zimbabwe hikes key interest rate to 200% from 80% amid runaway inflation

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

Trade setup for July 1: The bulls could give the Nifty50 a lift as long as it holds 15,600

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

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Chouhan sees key support for the 50-scrip index at 15,700, below which, the decline could continue all the way to 15,600-15,550 levels.

The level of 15,900 would act as important resistance, only a breakout above which will lead to the possibility of a fresh uptrend up to the 16,000-16,050 zone, he said.

FII/DII activity

 

Call/put open interest

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

Chartered Accountants Day — History, significance and all you need to know

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

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July 1 is celebrated as the Chartered Accountants’ Day to commemorate the establishment of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) by an Act of the Parliament in 1949. The day is also celebrated to recognise the contribution of the Chartered Accountants in nation building.

ICAI, the sole licensing and regulatory body in the accountancy and financial audit profession in India. It also has the distinction of being one of the oldest professional institutes in the country.  It was formed a year before even the constitution of the country was formalised. ICAI, with nearly 2.5 lakh members is also the second biggest accounting organisation in the world after the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (CPA).

ICAI’s official emblem given by SRI Aurobindo has a ‘garuda’ and a quote from the Upnishads  — “Ya esha supteshu jagriti”, which translates to the one who is awake in those that sleep. The first certificate issued by ICAI was to CA Gopaldas Padamsey Kapadia, who was also the institute’s first president.

History 

Prior to India’s independence, the rules of the British Government required companies to keep a track of their accounts under the Companies Act. A certified accountant was also required to be appointed to maintain the books.

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However, in absence of a regulatory body, confusion regarding the qualifications of auditors arose. In 1948, an expert committee appointed by the independent Indian government recommended setting up a separate autonomous association of accountants to regulate the profession in the country. Acting on the recommendation, the government established the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949.

Significance 

Chartered Accountants Day, the foundation day of ICAI, celebrates and honours the contribution of CAs in the country. The role of a CA is very crucial in any firm, regardless of the nature of the firm. CAs are responsible for ensuring that every financial activity goes on as per the provision of laws in India.

Also Read: As Brad Pitt prepares for the ‘last leg’, a look at some of his unforgettable roles

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

OPPO may launch Reno 8 smartphone lineup in July third week

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

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Chinese smartphone maker OPPO is tipped to launch the latest iteration of its flagship Reno series on July 21. While the company has confirmed that the Reno 8 and Reno 8 Pro will be launched in India in the coming couple of weeks,  an online leaker suggested the launch would be held at noon on July 21.

There is no word on the superpowered Reno 9 Pro Plus.

The official event page for the smartphones’ launch in India has gone live, with the company also sending out media invites to the event.

A new era in smartphone photography is calling! With sharper, clearer videos & portrait imagery, especially at night – the OPPO Reno8 Series is set to unleash the true photo expert in you! #OPPOReno8Series #UltraClearNightInPortrait
Know more: https://t.co/3lGaAqxVVL pic.twitter.com/kVOwFDv5CX

— OPPO India (@OPPOIndia) June 30, 2022

As per OPPO’s website. the Reno 8 Pro packs the MariSilicon X NPU (neural processing unit) and supports 4K ultra night videography. The Reno 8 Pro’s Chinese version is being powered a Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 chipset, but the Indian model will likely use the MediaTek Dimensity 8100-Max SoC, reported Moneycontrol.

OPPO is expected to confirm more details as we get closer to the launch date.

Also read: Mi 12S Ultra to have the largest-ever camera sensor in a smartphone

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

Terra USD, FTM and AXS: A round up of the worst-performing cryptocurrencies in the first half of 2022

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

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It’s been an awful last six months for the crypto market. The oldest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, has registered a 58 percent drop on a YTD basis. It has steadily declined from $46,726 at the start of 2022 to a low of $19,319 at the time of writing.

While this drop seems formidable, it is nothing compared to the value losses some altcoins have suffered in the last six months. So, tag along as we round up these worst-performing cryptocurrencies from the first half of 2022:

Terra USD

The biggest loser on the charts this year was obviously the Terra USD (UST). The algorithmic stablecoin lost its peg with the dollar and crashed all the way to $0. However, Terra soon halted its blockchain, rebranded the stablecoin to ‘Terra Classic USD’ (USTC), and made it operational again.

In the last 7 days, this rebranded stablecoin has ballooned 637 percent from $0.0084 to $0.059. But despite this massive gain, it still takes the top spot as the worst-performing cryptocurrency with a 93.83 percent loss YTD.

DeFi Tokens

With so many use cases, decentralised finance (DeFi) is considered the next big thing in the cryptosphere. However, most of these coins have been battered by the crypto winter and have been in freefall since the start of the year. Tokens such as Fantom, Avalanche, and Yearn Finance have been hit particularly hard.

The FTM token of the Fantom Protocol shed 90.44 percent YTD, starting at $2.33 and ending at $0.25 at the time of writing. Its market capitalisation was slashed by 89 percent, from $5.81 billion to $627.4 million in the last six months.

Also Read: A look at STEPN, the NFT app that pays you crypto to go running

Avalanche’s AVAX token also bled 85.51 percent from $112 at the start of the year to a current price of $16.5. Its market capitalisation plunged 82.45 percent in the process, falling from $26.56 billion to $4.66 billion YTD.

Avalanche is the fastest smart contracts platform among all the blockchains in the world and was once considered a rising star of the crypto world.

The YFI token of DeFi aggregator Yearn Finance nosedived 85.44 percent YTD from $33,500 to $5,262 in the first half of 2022. Its market capitalisation was swept clean from $1.22 billion to $192.86 million.

Metaverse Coins:

The metaverse has been the talk of the town since Facebook rebranded itself to Meta and virtual land plots sold at seven-figure prices. However, the severe crypto meltdown has spared no one. Metaverse tokens such as the Decentraland MANA, AXS by Axie Infinity, and The Sandbox’s SAND token have all taken quite a beating.

The worst-hit is Axie Infinity’s AXS token which has registered an 85.57 percent drop since the start of the year. The P2E platform’s token has slipped from $94.4 to $13.32 in the last six months. To make matters worse, Axie Infinity’s Ronin Bridge was even hit with a $625 hack back in March.

The SAND token has also collapsed by 83 percent since the start of 2022, going from $6 to $1 YTD. It’s a similar story for Decentraland’s MANA which has registered a price drop of 74.93 percent YTD, starting the year at $3.32 and landing at a mere $0.83 at the time of writing.

Ethereum Killers:

Ethereum killers such as Solana, Cardano, and Tezos have also been battered in 2022, with billions of dollars washed out from their market capitalisations.
Solana’s SOL token plummeted 82 percent YTD from $173 to $32 at the time of writing. Its market capitalisation lost 79.5 percent, falling from $53.18 billion to $10.9 billion. Solana is 4000x faster than Ethereum, with a blinding processing speed capacity of 65,000 transactions per second. However, it has recently been under the spotlight due to frequent network outages.

Tezos isn’t that far behind either. One of the greenest blockchains, Tezos lost 70.8 percent of its price to the crypto bloodbath. From$4.4 at the start of 2022, it has been pushed down to $1.38. Its market capitalisation has also shrunk from $4 billion to $1.3 billion, a 67.5 percent downturn.

Some coins have manged to keep their head above water

However, it’s not all bad news. Some coins have managed to fight the trend and tide over these difficult times. Among them is a relatively unheard-of coin, UNUS SED LEO (LEO). It was founded by iFinex, which is the parent company of Bitfinex. LEO registered 56.21 percent gains on a YTD basis, jumping from $3.8 at the start of the year to $5.94 at the time of writing.

This jump could be attributed to its unique burn mechanism, wherein iFinex buys back LEO from the market every month at market rates. The amount of LEO bought back and burned equals at least 27 percent of the revenue generated by iFinex.

Also Read: You can now earn crypto when you shop; all you need to know about shop-to-earn

Next on the list of better-performing coins are TrueUSD (TUSD) and USD Coin (USDC), both registering marginal gains of 0.16 percent and 0.01 percent YTD, respectively. Following them is the USDD coin, currently trading at $0.99, just as it was at the start of the year. However, this is expected of stablecoins as they are designed to maintain their peg with the US Dollar constantly.

Following the stablecoins are the ApeCoin (APE) and STEPN (GMT). These coins have not gained or lost value since the start of the year. This is commendable given how much other altcoins have bled. APE is the governance and utility token of the APE Ecosystem. On the other hand, the GMT is the governance token of the popular move-to-earn NFT app STEPN, which has seen an influx of users over the last few months. These were the only coins that managed to stay in the green or not fall below it.

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

Startup Digest: Lenskart acquires Owndays, Ankiti Bose resigns from Zilingo board, Swiggy to buyback ESOPs worth $23 million & GetVantage raises $36 million

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

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Lenskart acquires majority stake in Japan-based Owndays

Omnichannel eyewear retailer Lenskart has acquired a majority stake in Japanese eyewear brand Owndays to become the region’s largest Omni-channel eyewear business via this strategic partnership.

As per reports, the deal is valued at $400 million. However, the company did not disclose details of the deal. This acquisition will enable Lenskart to expand its presence to 13 markets in Asia including India, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Japan, a statement said.

Owndays’ co-founders, CEO Shuji Tanaka, and COO Take Umiyama, will continue to be shareholders and lead the management team while the brand will continue operating independently, the firm added.

“With OWNDAYS we move a step closer to democratizing eyewear. I have known Shuji-san and Take-san for over five years and have been an admirer of the disruptive brand and customer experience they have built with OWNDAYS.

To bring about a revolutionary change such as the one the world needs in eyewear, we need to work with like-minded and complementary founders,” said Peyush Bansal, co-founder, and group CEO at Lenskart.

B2B unicorn Zetwerk acquires 3 companies for Rs 100 crore

B2B marketplace unicorn Zetwerk has acquired a majority stake in three companies for a cumulative sum of Rs 100 crore. The firm has acquired a majority stake in Pinaka Aerospace Solution, in a cash plus equity deal.

Zetwerk would benefit from Pinaka’s client portfolio, which includes government research facilities like DRDO and ISRO and enterprise clients like Carlisle, Tata, and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, , among others, it said in a statement.

Also Read: Shiprocket to Zepto, these startups are most likely to become unicorns in 2023

The unicorn has also acquired a majority stake in SharpTanks, an engineering and construction company operating in the oil and gas sector. The acquisition makes them one of the seven companies in the space, the firm said.

Zetwerk also purchased the Wardha fabrication unit of Wheels India, in a bid to gain market share in the $1.5-billion market for the manufacture of critical fabricated parts used in power, roads and railway projects.

Ankiti Bose resigns from B2B-fashion startup Zilingo’s board

E-commerce fashion startup Zilingo’s co-founder and former CEO Ankiti Bose resigned from the company’s board, including the holding company and any of its subsidiaries.

Taking to the social media platform Instagram, Bose said, “It is heartbreakingly clear to me that hundreds of employees and customers are also in a state of limbo and do not have any clarity on their future – just like me. Real lives and jobs have been at stake.”

“This is a difficult time for my Zilingo team, and I want to assure all my beloved Zilingo colleagues that my resignation as a board member is not in conflict with my commitment to save the company,” she added.

Bose was fired on May 20 from the Singapore-based startup after she had been suspended due to alleged financial irregularities. She was told about mismanagement and accounting irregularities at the company when it was looking to raise funds.

Zilingo said the decision to suspend her over financial irregularities was taken by the Board jointly. It added that the harassment allegations came only after her suspension on March 31.

“Over the past few months, despite my many requests, the Zilingo board has failed to show me any report (issued by Kroll or Deloitte) which pertained to any investigations into the company or into my alleged misconduct, and why or how these were used to terminate my position as CEO,” Bose said.

This, she added, was despite the fact that she was a director on the Board of Zilingo’s holding company and subsidiaries, and is a large shareholder. Other material information pertaining to the company was also concealed from her, Bose claimed.

Swiggy to buyback ESOPs worth $23 million from 900 employees

Online food-delivery giant Swiggy to buy back shares worth $23 million issued under its employee stock option program (ESOP) from about 900 employees. The foodtech decacorn has also announced that the next round of ESOP liquidity will be held in July 2023. This enables employees holding ESOPs to create wealth alongside the growth and success of the brand, it said in a statement.

Swiggy has also rolled out a new program, named Buy Your Own Dollar (BYOD), wherein employees of the food delivery major can choose to invest in the company’s ESOPs. ESOPs were earlier offered to employees above a certain grade and/or based on performance, the firm added. The BYOD program will be open to all permanent employees of the company.

Vedantu follows BYJU’s, Unacademy to offset online losses, launches tuition centre

As the online learning space continues to shrink in India, edtech platform Vedantu on Thursday announced it has opened a ‘hybrid’ learning centre in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur.

The tuition centre will primarily cater to students preparing for IIT-JEE and NEET exams. The courses will cover preparation for IIT-JEE and NEET, a two-year course for students of Class 11, and a one-year course for the dropper batch.

Also Read: As BYJU’s consolidates, group companies White Hat Jr and Toppr lay off 600 employees

“These hybrid centres are well equipped with hi-tech technology, the teaching model offers learning from the most inspiring master teachers across the country enabled by innovation to offer best-in-class live and interactive features in tier 3 and tier 4 cities,” said Vamsi Krishna, CEO, and co-founder, Vedantu.

The move comes as edtech platforms like BYJU’s and Unacademny have forayed into physical coaching centres nationwide amid a severe crunch in the online learning market.

GetVantage raises $36 million led by Varanium Nexgen, DMI Sparkle Fund, eyes Southeast Asia expansion

GetVantage, a revenue-based lending platform for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) has raised $36 million in a growth funding round led by Varanium Nexgen Fintech Fund, DMI Sparkle Fund, and existing investors Chiratae Ventures and Dream Incubator Japan. New investors including Sony Innovation Fund, InCred Capital, and Haldiram’s Family Office amongst others, also participated in the funding round.

The company will use the proceeds of the fundraise for growing its financing solution and embedded finance product, enhance technology infrastructure, scale its product suite, expand their growing portfolio of B2B SaaS and subscription-driven businesses and will also explore new-market opportunities across Southeast Asia, a statement said.

In 2021, GetVantage saw 300 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth. According to the company, it also helped brands achieve 1.8x revenue growth post-funding on average. Going forward, the startup is aiming to scale its embedded finance solution by 30x.

Urvann raises Rs 3 crore in seed round from Inflection Point Ventures

Gardening-focused hyperlocal marketplace Urvann has raised Rs 3 crore in a seed round of funding led by Inflection Point Ventures (IPV). The funds raised will be utilised for the expansion of operations across the country, the company said in a statement.

The firm claims to have catered to 15,000+ orders, delivered 100,000 plants in Delhi, and served more than 6,000 happy customers. It is now aiming to expand its operations in major Indian cities including Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, and Chennai by the end of this year. The startup is also looking to increase its monthly GMV by 10X by the year-end.

Venture Catalysts invests an undisclosed amount in NOTO

NOTO, a packaged food brand, has bagged an undisclosed investment in its Pre-Series A round led by Venture Catalysts. The company said it will utilize the funds to scale up its operations and venture into new product categories.

Backed by key investors like actor John Abraham, Titan Capital, Rockstud Capital and WEH Ventures, NOTO offers a range of ice creams that are less than 95 Calories and 5 grams Protein per serving and popsicles which is 45 calories or less. Noto has also released a Vegan range to target the ever-growing plant-based and lactose-free consumer segment.

Metastable Materials raises Pre-Seed round from Angels

Urban mining startup Metastable Materials has raised an undisclosed amount of pre-seed funding from a clutch of angel investors and venture capital firms.

The pre-seed round was led by Akshay Singhal and Kartik Hajela, co-founders of Log9 Materials, Archana Priyadarshini, General Partner, PointOne and Sanjiv Rangrass, Ex-Group Head at ITC, among other angels.

The firm will use the fresh capital to build Lithium-ion battery supply chain infra, scale-up Metastable’s patented process, and develop corresponding supply chains. In addition, the amount raised will be deployed in team, operations, and infrastructure expansion for Metastable, the company said.

IN-SPACe gives green signal to Dhruva Space to launch payloads

Indian Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) has approved Dhruva Space for the testing and space-qualification of its Satellite Orbital Deployers for the PSLV C53 mission by ISRO.

This is the first time that a privately-owned Indian enterprise will be launching payloads in space. Earlier, ISRO was the only government body that was permitted to launch in space. Dhruva’s payload Dhruva Space Satellite Orbital Deployer will be launched on June 30.

Spocto hires former Zomato, Google, Amazon executives to bolster its tech team

Spocto, an AI-powered collect tech platform, has on-boarded former Zomato, Google, and Amazon tech leaders to bolster its capabilities in debt collection through innovation in Big Data, ML and Conversational AI.

The newly appointed leaders, Vivek Srikantan, Ashish Khurana and Sudarshan Radhakrishnan, will take on the responsibilities of vice president, engineering, senior director, engineering, and head of product excellence respectively.

Also Read: This Singapore edtech is offering jobs in India when domestic competitors are on a firing spree

With a cumulative experience of 47 years among the three, these tech leaders will boost deeper tech synergies while making its offerings more robust in debt collection and recovery mechanisms, a statement said.

Srikantan has over two decades of experience in building core tech platforms at companies such as HP, Amazon, and Google. Khurana has previously transformed Zomato’s food value chain into a more effective and scalable one. Meanwhile, Radhakrishnan has worked across organizations such as Standard Chartered and Tata Consultancy where he led efforts on voice AI and data science.

Apna partners with Google to optimize upskilling and job opportunities

apna.co, a jobs and professional networking platform has partnered with Google Cloud to optimize upskilling and job opportunities pan-India.

The professional networking platform is using a combination of Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), BigQuery, and Vertex AI and will provide targeted networking and seamless matchmaking for job seekers across the country.

The company also aims to strengthen its scalability provided by Kubernetes-based micro-services, it said in a statement.

GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY & STARTUP NEWS

Coinbase looks to expand in Europe: Report

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global has renewed focus on its expansion in Europe and is in the process of registering in markets including Italy, Spain, France, and the Netherlands, Bloomberg News reported.

“In all these markets our intention is to have retail and institutional products,” the report quoted Nana Murugesan, Coinbase’s vice president of business development and international, as saying in an interview. The company is already registered in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Germany, and recently hired its first employee in Switzerland, Murugesan said.

A US FCC commissioner urges Apple, Google to boot TikTok from app stores

A Republican member of the Federal Communications Commission has urged the chief executives of Apple and Google to kick Chinese-owned TikTok out of its app stores, Reuters reported.

Brendan Carr, the FCC commissioner, said in a letter to the CEOs, dated June 24 and sent on FCC letterhead, that video-sharing app TikTok has collected vast troves of sensitive data about US users that could be accessed by ByteDance staff in Beijing. ByteDance is TikTok’s Chinese parent.

“TikTok is not just another video app. That’s the sheep’s clothing,” Carr said on Twitter. “It harvests swaths of sensitive data that new reports show are being accessed in Beijing. “Carr asked the companies to either remove TikTok from their app stores by July 8 or explain to him why they did not plan to do so.

EU seeks deal on ground-breaking rules to regulate crypto

The European Union will seek agreement on ground-breaking rules for regulating crypto assets as the rout in bitcoin piles pressure on authorities to rein in the sector, according to a Reuters report.

Globally, crypto assets are largely unregulated, with national operators in the EU only required to show controls for combating money laundering. A deal would put the EU ahead of the global regulatory pack by giving issuers of crypto assets and providers of related services a “passport” to serve clients across the EU from a single base, while meeting added capital and consumer protection rules.

Representatives from the European Parliament and EU states meet to thrash out a deal on the markets in crypto assets (MiCA) law, which would come into force around the end of 2023.

Google targeted in fresh EU consumer groups’ privacy complaints

Google has been targeted by a French consumer group and its peers in complaints to privacy watchdogs over its vast trove of users’ personal data harvested via their Google accounts, European consumer organisation BEUC said.

As per Reuters, in addition to the French consumer group, others in Greece, the Czech Republic, Norway, and Slovenia have taken their complaints to their data protection authorities, BEUC said.

It said the German consumer body had sent a letter to Google, a unit of Alphabet that could lead to a civil lawsuit, while consumer agencies in the Netherlands, Denmark, and Sweden have written to their privacy regulators alerting them about Google’s practices. BEUC said the issue was Google’s account sign-up process.

Chinese tech giants vow to stop NFT secondary trading: Report

Chinese tech giants including Tencent and Ant Group have signed a pact to stop the secondary trading of digital collectibles and “self-regulate” their activities in the market, Chinese state media reported.

Also Read: Udaan, backed by Tencent and Lightspeed Ventures, fires 160-180 employees as it ‘refines its cost structure’

The companies were among 30 firms and institutes that have agreed to the “Digital Collectible Industry Self-Discipline Development Initiative” in which they will help prevent secondary trading and speculation in digital collectibles, according to a report by the Shanghai Securities News.

The newspaper added that the initiative was led by the Chinese Cultural Industry Association and that other signatories included Baidu and JD.com.

Apple eyes fuel purchases from dashboard as it revs up car software

Apple wants you to start buying gas directly from your car dashboard as early as this fall, when the newest version of its CarPlay software rolls out, accelerating the company’s push to turn your vehicle into a store for goods and services.

As per a Reuters report, a new feature quietly unveiled at Apple’s developer conference this month will allow CarPlay users to tap an app to navigate to a pump and buy gas straight from a screen in the car, skipping the usual process of inserting or tapping a credit card. Details of Apple’s demo for developers have not previously been reported.

Apple currently does not charge automakers, developers or users for CarPlay; the business interest is putting Apple at the forefront as cars transform into rolling computers, said Horace Dediu, an analyst with Asymco and founder of Micromobility Industries. The new feature will hit hundreds of car models already compatible with CarPlay when Apple releases software updates this fall.

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