Month: November 2022

Funding Rundown: Ex-Flipkart exec’s new startup catches global investor attention, Shilpa Shetty invests in Hunar & Gamerji raises $3 million

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

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Ex-Flipkart executive’s startup Flash raises $5.8 million

Founded by former Flipkart senior vice president, Ranjith Boyanapalli, Flash had raised $5.8 million in a seed funding round led by global funds like Global Founders Capital (GFC), White Venture Capital (a fund by Jitendra Gupta & Amrish Rau), Zinal Growth, Soma Capital, Emphasis Ventures and Peer Capital.

The funding round also saw the participation of India’s top angel investors including Binny Bansal (Ex-co-founder, Flipkart), Kunal Shah (Founder, CRED), Arpan Sheth (Senior Partner, Bain & Co), Sujeet Kumar (co-founder, Udaan), Nikhil Srivastava (PAG Venture), Lalit Keshre (CEO, Groww), Rishi Vasudev (Co-Founder, GOAT Brand Labs) and others.

Launching in India initially, Flash aims to cater to the top 25 million power shoppers, who contribute to nearly 70 percent of the online shopping revenue and are estimated to further grow to 65mn by 2030. Flash looks to address the potential challenges for these power shoppers around post-order experience, lack of rewards, and cluttered communication.

Pet care start-up Vetic raises $3.7 million in seed funding round led by Lachy Groom

Vetic, a tech-enabled chain of modern clinics focusing on overall pet health care, has raised $3.7 million in a seed funding round led by Lachy Groom.

The round also saw participation from angel investors including Utsav Somani (Partner, AngelList India), Nitin Saluja (Founder Chaayos), Ritesh Agarwal (CEO, OYO), Abhinav Sinha (COO OYO), Shiva Singh Sangwan (Founder,1947 Rise), Maninder Gulati (CSO OYO), Revant Bhate (CEO, Mosaic Wellness), Anuj Tejpal (CBO OYO), Revant Bhate (CEO, Mosaic Wellness), Abhishek Gupta (CFO OYO) and Manu Gupta (Founder, Blue Lion VC) amongst others.

Started in August 2022 by Gaurav Ajmera (ex-COO OYO and ex-CBO Pristyn Care), Vetic offers a full stack pet care experience through a combination of technology platform and a network of physical clinics offering services ranging from OPD, in-house diagnostics, surgeries, emergency care, grooming, online consultation, quick commerce and more. The Start-up currently has 4 clinics in Gurgaon and plans to scale to 15 clinics across Delhi NCR and Bengaluru by June 2023.

Gamerji raises $3 million in pre-Series A

Esports tournament platform Gamerji has raised $3 million in a Pre-Series A round from GVFL (formerly Gujarat Venture Finance Limited) and Unicorn India Ventures, an early backer of the startup.

Also Read: Govt aims to create more than 1 crore job from digital economy in next 2 years: Vaishnaw

Funds raised will be used for growing the platform in recently launched international markets within the MENA region along with launch plans for Southeast Asia, starting with Indonesia and the Philippines.

The company also plans to use these funds towards developing tech solutions and EaaS (E-sports as a service) to enhance the online gaming experience. Gamerji claims to have grown from 1 million to 4 million+ users in 12 months, along with serving tournaments for more than 22 core esports titles.

CBREX raises $3 million in a pre-series A funding round

CBREX, a global B2B driven talent sourcing platform connecting enterprises and recruitment agencies, has raised $3 million in a pre-Series A round led by WaterBridge Ventures. The freshly raised funds will be used to ramp up the US go-to-market, fuel product development, and accelerate client and partner growth.

With the platform processing more than 1,000 resumes a week with a shortlist ratio of 83 percent, CBREX claims to have enabled hiring across 22 countries in a quick time.

Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty Kundra invests in Hunar Online Courses

Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty Kundra becomes an investor and brand ambassador for Hunar Online Courses, a skilling platform with a community of over 20 lakh women.

Students of Hunar Online Courses have access to 55+ video-based online skill courses in the fashion, food, and beauty segments. These basic-to-advance courses are pre-recorded classes with live virtual masterclasses and webinars by certified teachers and industry experts.

Also Read: Tata Motors partners with IndusInd Bank to offer electric vehicle dealer financing

Hunar Online Courses has a growing community of more than 20 lakh women and over 45,000 students, out of which 30 percent are running solopreneurs or micropreneurs, earning up to Rs 50,000 every month.

ClassMonitor raises Rs 10 crore in pre-Series A round

ClassMonitor, an edtech startup that offers home learning programs for early learners in the age group of 0-8 years, has raised Rs 10 crore in a Pre Series A round. Frontline Strategy Funds and Khimji Family (Muscat) led the round with participation from existing investors Sarvann & Calega Family Office.

ClassMonitor is set to use the fresh funds to leverage AI-ML-based technology to enhance learning experiences for young children. The platform plans on strengthening its hybrid model by establishing a large network of franchised after-school learning centres.

Additionally, the startup wants to add more channels including offline stores & schools while building organic traction from international markets with a strong focus on the UAE markets.

Burma Burma raises over $2 million in debut fundraise led by Negen Capital AIF

Burma Burma, a popular Burmese vegan restaurant chain, has raised more than $2 million in a seed round led by Negen Capital. The fundraising round also saw participation from Bbigplas Poly Private Ltd among other angel investors.

Also Read: Unacademy to layoff 10% of its workforce amid funding challenges

Having started operations in Mumbai in 2014, Burma Burma has a presence in five other metros — Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Bengaluru, and Kolkata. With the fresh funding, the restaurant chain is looking at expanding its presence across the country.

“We are looking at opening 8 new outlets within the next 15 months taking our total count to 14 outlets. With our 450+ member strong team, our next target is to take Burma Burma beyond India, we’re now ready more than ever,” said Chirag Chhajer, co-founder, Burma Burma.

Cinnamon Homes raises angel funding from multiple investors

Cinnamon Homes, a new-age home furniture and home décor brand, has raised an undisclosed amount of angel funding from multiple angel investors in its maiden fundraising round.

The funding round was jointly led by Rahul Dash, co-founder of Purplle (a unicorn start-up in beauty space) and Chetan Jajoria, Vice President at Deutsche Bank.

The funds raised through this angel round will be utilized by Cinnamon Homes towards bolstering its marketing and product development efforts as well as for driving immediate business growth and expansion in the Delhi-NCR region.

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

Goldfish movie review: Of tangled pasts, uncertain futures, and coming together despite it all

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

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In the last scene of Pushan Kripalani’s latest film Goldfish, Sadhana Tripathi (Deepti Naval), a veteran Indian classical singer battling with the onset of dementia, looks out the window of her London home as she has her evening coffee with her estranged daughter Anamika (Kalki Koechlin). Ana holds her hand and asks her, “Do you know who I am?” Sadhana says she doesn’t. A heartbeat later she squeezes Ana’s hand and says, “But this is enough.”

At 102 minutes, Goldfish is about a mother struggling to remember and a daughter desperately trying to forget. Full of pensive silences and abrasive truths revealing a fraught past, it revolves around identity, memory, community, and the human need to belong.

Set in London in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, Goldfish starts with Ana being called back home after Sadhana unwittingly sets fire inside the house while cooking pakoras, making her neighbors finally accept that she can no longer be trusted to live by herself. Ana’s return after several years forces her to finally confront the haunting memories of her troubled past and make sense of her acerbic relationship with her mother.

Powered by Kripalani and Arghya Lahiri’s taught and poignant screenplay, Koechlin and Naval give impressive, restrained performances as the mother and daughter who have a history of scalding each other, some wounds still festering, but who also show surprising kindness in unexpected moments. There is a scene in which after an intense confrontation Ana tells Sadhana, “For years, and even now sometimes, I tell people I’m adopted.” Sadhana looks at her with a blank face and replies, “So do I.” The two women look at each other for a moment and burst out laughing hysterically.

There’s another—a rare, tender moment—in which Ana, the daughter of an Indian woman with a British student whom she met as he was backpacking across the country, helps Sadhana drape a pristine white silk saree as she prepares to send her to a care home. Friendly neighbors advise her to spend as much time as she can with her mother but it is time that she doesn’t have. She needs to start a new job in Switzerland in a week.

Goldfish takes a considered and honest look at what parents and children can do to each other, the hundred big and small ways in which we inflict trauma on those close to us, not always unintentionally. Remember how most families were so elated on being reunited after years during the first wave of the pandemic? And then the second wave hit, infinitely worse and anxiety-inducing, and homes quickly turned into hellholes with no escape. Worms started to spill and suppurate. In Goldfish, Ana tries to dissect as many as she can so she can be around without harming herself or her mother who she barely knows anymore.

Other than Koechlin and Naval, Goldfish also features Rajit Kapur, Gordon Warnecke, and Bharti Patel in key roles. After having had a dream run at several international film festivals, it had its India premiere at the recently-concluded 53rd International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Goa.

Read other pieces by Sneha Bengani 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

World AIDS Day: Symptoms, prevention, treatment and more

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

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AIDS or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome describes a number of potentially life-threatening infections and illnesses caused by HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), a virus that attacks the body’s immune system. The virus damages the cells in the infected person’s immune system and weakens his or her ability to fight the disease or infection.

There is no effective cure for HIV. Those who are infected with it, have it for life. However, with more medical care, the virus can be controlled. Those who get effective HIV treatment can live long and healthy lives.

On the occasion of World AIDS Day, here is a look at the symptoms, prevention and treatment for the disease.

AIDS and HIV

Due to public misconception, AIDS and HIV were confused as just one affliction. However, they are not the same and those with HIV do not always have AIDS.

HIV is a virus or a small infectious agent passed from one person to another. The virus multiplies itself by taking control of cells inside a host and destroying the CD4 cells or T cells in the immune system that help to protect a person from infections.

ALSO READ: World AIDS Day: History, theme, significance and more

AIDS, on the other hand, is a syndrome or a group of connected symptoms that is caused by the damage that HIV does to your immune system. It is the most serious stage of HIV and over time leads to the death of the person.

While the HIV virus can be transmitted from one person to another, AIDS cannot.

Symptoms

In the early period, most people get a short flu-like illness 2 to 6 weeks after the HIV infection. The flu lasts for a week or two. Soon these symptoms disappear and the HIV may not cause any other symptoms for many years even though the virus continues to damage your immune system. For this reason, many people with HIV do not know they’re infected.

When HIV remains untreated, it typically turns into AIDS in about 8 to 10 years. AIDS occurs when the immune system had been severely damaged. As a result, the person is likely to develop diseases that a person with a healthy immune system is unlikely to have. These are called opportunistic cancers or opportunistic infections. Some of the symptoms of these infections may include sweating, chills, chronic diarrhoea, recurring fever, weakness, fatigue, weight loss, and skin rashes.

Prevention

There are many effective ways to reduce the risk or prevent contracting HIV infection. These include abstinence from sex, using condoms, never sharing needles and screening for HIV during pregnancy.

Doctors also prescribe pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medicine to those who are HIV-negative to reduce the risk of getting the virus.

ALSO READ: World AIDS Vaccine Day 2022: All you need to know about its history and significance

Those with HIV can go for effective treatment which reduces their viral load to undetectable levels. This reduces the level of HIV virus in the blood to such levels that they cannot be detected by a test.

Those who have been exposed to the virus can take post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) medicine to prevent becoming infected.

Treatment

There is no cure for HIV even though effective treatments can help people with the virus live a long and healthy life. Those with the infection can be treated with antiretroviral medicines. These medicines stop the virus from replicating in the body, allowing the immune system to repair itself and prevent further damage.

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

SEBI reduces timeline for listing of debt securities issued on private placement basis

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

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Markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Wednesday reduced the timeline for listing of debt securities issued on a private placement basis to three days. Currently, the timeline is four days and the latest move would also expedite the availability of securities for trading by the investors.

SEBI has listed out the steps involved in pre-listing and post-listing along with relevant timelines, both through Electronic Book Provider (EBP) platform and otherwise. This is to provide more clarity and standardisation in the process of issuance and listing of such securities on the private placement basis.

The new guidelines would come into effect from January 1, 2023, SEBI said in a circular.

The time taken for listing of such securities after the closure of the issue has been reduced to three working days (T+3) as against the present requirement of 4 working days (T+4).

Also Read: Sebi bars five brokerage houses for six months — here’s why

Under the EBP mechanism, an issuer wishing to list non-convertible securities or municipal debt securities will have to ensure receipt of in-principle approval from the stock exchange prior to the date of providing the placement memorandum and term sheet to the EBP.

It has set a timeline of T-2 or T-5 day for such approval under the EBP platform while the same would be prior to T day for non-EBP platform.

T refers to issue closure date.

Issuer would have to provide the bidding start time and close time under the EBP platform on or before T-1 and then bidding on the EBP would be done on T day.

Subsequently, the issuer would have to ensure receipt of ISIN from a depository prior to pay-in and apply to other depository for admission of such proposed debt issuance by T+1.

On or before T+1/T+2, issue of credit confirmation letter by depositories to issuer and issuers will have to make an application for listing of its debt securities by T+3.

Also Read: SEBI restructures advisory panels for foreign investors, social stock exchange

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

Essar to set up £360-million carbon capture plant at Stanlow refinery in UK

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

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Essar Oil UK Limited (Essar) will set up a carbon capture plant at its Stanlow refinery in the UK at an investment cost of GBP 360 million (around Rs 3,514 crore) in line with its carbon reduction plans.

The plant will eliminate an estimated 0.81 million tonne of CO2 per year which is equivalent to taking 400,000 cars off the road, eliminating nearly 40 percent of all Stanlow emissions, Essar said in a statement on Wednesday.

The company aims to complete the project by 2027.

“Essar announces plan to build a GBP 360 million major new carbon capture plant at its Stanlow refinery in line with its ambition to become a leading low carbon refinery by 2030.

Also Read: Britannia signs joint venture agreement with France’s Bel SA for sale of Cheese

(Overall) Essar is investing over £1 billion into a range of energy efficiency, fuel-switching, and carbon capture initiatives, designed to decarbonise its production processes significantly by 2030 and put the company at the forefront of the UK’s shift to low carbon energy,” the statement said.

Deepak Maheshwari, CEO of Essar Oil UK said, the new carbon capture plant is the single-biggest initiative to decarbonise the company’s processes and a core element to its ambitious decarbonisation strategy. Essar’s ambition is to become a leading low-carbon refinery.

“This is a massive undertaking, but it is a journey we are fully committed to. Not only is it the right environmental thing to do, it will future-proof the critical Stanlow refinery for the long term, protecting jobs and industry, while also placing Stanlow at the very centre of the UK’s energy transition,” he said.

Essar is already making rapid progress against its broader decarbonisation targets.

Also Read: Zydus Lifesciences aims to build its specialty pharma business over the next five years

In September, the company announced it had signed an offtake agreement with Vertex, a joint venture with progressive energy, for the supply of over 280 MW of hydrogen.

The hydrogen will be used to help decarbonise Essar’s existing production facilities including the new hydrogen-powered furnace 1 which was delivered in August this year.

Essar is a leading downstream energy company whose Stanlow manufacturing complex is one of the most advanced refineries in Europe situated close to the major cities of Liverpool and Manchester.

Also Read: Telecom companies to stop 5G services in high-frequency bands in & around airports

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

Mumbai property registrations increased by 15% to 8,756 units in November

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

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Registration of properties in Mumbai municipal region rose 15 percent this month to 8,756 units on higher demand despite an increase in interest rates, according to Knight Frank India. In November 2021, the registration of properties stood at 7,582 units.

Growth in property sale registrations in Mumbai continues to remain robust with some moderation recorded in the recent months, the consultant said.

“Supported by strong consumer sentiment and supportive drivers, the Mumbai residential market has grown despite geopolitical headwinds,” Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director of Knight Frank India, said.

Also read: Only way to develop Mumbai is through redevelopment, says Irfan Razack

“As the festival season that drove market sentiment in the last month ends, November 2022 remains a beneficiary to the sustained momentum recording a YoY rise in property sales and government revenue collection,” he added.

However, Baijal said the growth rate appears to have moderated marginally due to the increased mortgage rates.

Properties falling in the price bracket of Rs 1-2.5 crore have emerged as a preferred ticket size in November 2022 having a share contribution of 42 percent.

Also read: Godrej Properties hopes to launch Rs 8,000 cr luxury housing project in Delhi by March

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

Telecom companies to stop 5G services in high-frequency bands in & around airports

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

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Telecom operators will need to shut down 5G services in high-frequency bands in and around airports following restrictions imposed by the Department of Telecom at the request of the civil aviation ministry, according to sources.

Based on buffer and safety zone details provided by the aviation ministry, the DoT has asked telecom operators to not install 5G base stations in the 3.3-3.6 Ghz band in the area of 2.1 kilometres from both ends of the runway and 910 meters from the centre line of the runway of Indian airports with immediate effect.

“Telecom operators will need to shut down 5G service in the 3.3-3.6 Ghz band only in and around airports based on the order. It is a temporary restriction. The services can be restored after DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) ensures that altimeters at all aircraft have been replaced. DGCA has not shared any timeline for completing the replacement exercise,” a source told PTI.

Also read: TRAI recommends separate licence for satellite earth station gateway operators

Airtel is the only telecom operator that has installed 5G services at select airports, including at Patna, Bengaluru, Pune, Varanasi and Nagpur.

The DoT notice dated November 29 has asked telecom operators to tilt down 5G base stations to avoid interference of 5G signals with that of altimeters– a device which helps pilots maintain the desired height of the aircraft.

The DoT in the notice said that DGCA is expected to complete the altimeter replacement exercise in a proactive and time-bound manner.

DoT has requested DGCA to provide a timeline for replacement of radio altimeters and its filters with a sharp cut-off date.

“Further, DGCA should communicate geo-coordinates of four corners of all the airstrips where such limitations or restrictions are required to be placed on 5G systems, within 30 days from issue of this letter,” the notice dated November 29 said.

Also read: Shift to 5G: India looks to boost equipment production to remove bottlenecks

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

Revealed: How football fan tokens are performing through the FIFA World Cup

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

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The FIFA World Cup is one of the biggest sporting events in the world. It is second only to the Summer Olympics in terms of viewership. However, this year’s edition has something special that its predecessors did not, a unique addition that makes the fan experience all the more amazing.

Any guesses? It’s the football fan token.

Fan tokens are a type of cryptocurrency that provides membership into sports fandoms, including football clubs, racing teams, etc. The holders of these tokens are entitled to several perks, such as access to exclusive experiences and content. It also allows them a chance to win amazing prizes and vote on several matters pertaining to the team.

And with the World Cup currently in full swing, the market for football fan tokens is also heating up. Tag along as we quickly discuss how some of the top fan tokens have performed during the mega footballing event and analyze trends surrounding this unique combination of crypto and sports.

Also Read: Conflicting Ethereum whale, node and user activity: What it could mean for the network

To begin with, the trading volume of fan tokens saw a massive increase leading up to the World Cup. According to insights a from Paris-based data firm, Kaiko, the trading volume for fan tokens increased from $32 million in Oct to $300 million in Nov. This 10-fold increase is an encouraging sign for fan tokens.

However, in the same breath, the price valuations for most football fan tokens have plummeted significantly during the same period.

For instance, the Argentine Football Association Fan Token (ARG) is down 30.66 percent over the last week. It took a sharp plunge after the team’s shock defeat to Saudi Arabia on Nov 22, falling from $7.46 to $5.15 on the day of the loss. However, what’s surprising is that ARG failed to make a comeback even after the team pulled out a win against Ghana.

It’s a similar story for the Brazil National Football Team Fan Token (BFT), which is down a whopping 55 percent over the last seven days. This is quite surprising given that Brazil has performed exceptionally well in the tournament so far, winning both of its matches and topping its group.

Also Read: How will digital rupee rollout impact physical currency?

Portugal’s National Team Fan Token (POR) isn’t doing well, either. POR has lost more than 32 percent of its value in the last seven days, despite the team winning both its group-stage matches.

Spain is another token that showed promise leading up to the World Cup but has been in freefall since it began. The Spain National Fan Token (SNFT) is down a massive 62 percent for the week and has lost more than half of its value since the start of the year. This is despite Spain topping its group in the FIFA World Cup.

Even Chiliz (CHZ), the issuer of most fan tokens, is currently facing headwinds. CHZ hit a 7-month high earlier this month in the buildup to the tournament. However, it has handed back most of its gains since then and is currently trading at $0.1648. That’s a 10 percent drop for the week.

The only fan token in the green is the Croatian FF Fan Token (VATRENI). The runners-up from last year’s FIFA World Cup have continued their form into this edition of the tournament as well. They won against Canada, drew against Morocco and currently top their group table. The stellar performance is also reflected in the price of the team’s fan token. VATRENI is up 3.50 percent for the week and is the only national fan token in the green during that period.

Also Read: Crypto exchange Bitfront backed by Japanese social-media company LINE shuts down

As we can see, barring VATRENI, most coins did pretty well leading up to the World Cup but began tumbling once the tournament started. This is aptly reflected in the market capitalization of fan tokens, which rose to $400 million during the tournament’s first few days. This was a massive increase from the $250 million range it was hovering within ten days before kickoff. However, with prices plummeting, the market cap of fan tokens quickly fell back to the $300 million range, according to data from CoinGecko.

One positive that can be drawn from an otherwise grim picture is that POR and ARG have registered massive YTD gains. Portugal’s fan token is up by 260 percent since the start of the year, whereas ARG has registered a 100 percent increase during the same period. This is a good sign for investors and adds another level of rivalry to the Messi versus Ronaldo showdown.

The main reason behind the sinking price valuations could be the collapse of FTX and the contagion effect it has had on the entire market. Most coins have registered substantial losses over the last couple of weeks, and it could take some time to recover from such a large black swan event. Fortunately, the FIFA World Cup is only just getting started. Moreover, all of the teams mentioned above have a chance of progressing to the next stage of the tournament, and good performances could spell a turnaround for their fan tokens.

Also Read: Momentum and contrarian trading in crypto: Pros and cons

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

MoooFarm bags $13 million in series A and Cashify’s retail strategy

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

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Agritech and dairy startup, MoooFarm which focuses on bridging the technology gap to empower marginalised dairy farmers has raised $13 million in its series A funding round.

Aavishkaar Capital, the impact investing arm of the Aavishkaar Group, led the round in partnership with Aditya Birla Ventures and Accel Partners along with existing investors Rockstart Agrifood, Navus Ventures including venture debt from Alteria Capital.

To talk about the road ahead at MoooFarm, co-founder and chief technical officer, Jitesh Arora and Sushma Kaushik, Partner at Aavishkaar Capital spoke to Startup Street.

Cashify, a recommerce platform for used electronics, has outlined an aggressive retail expansion strategy. The startup which currently has 170 offline stores plans to expand to 250 by March of next year. This is with an aim to reach 120 percent annual growth. It also wants to be present in another 30 cities by the end of this year.

Also Read: Fintechs say ready to comply with new RBI digital lending rules

The company, in June, had raised $90 million and was backed by the likes of Newquest Capital Partners and Prosus. Startup Street spoke to Nakul Kumar, co-founder of Cashify to discuss the company’s expansion plan and its road to profitability.

It’s the dawn of a new era in the fintech space, with the Reserve Bank of India’s new rules on digital lending guidelines kicking in starting tomorrow. These guidelines cover areas across lending processes, disclosures, technology, and data gathering by regulated entities, their digital lending apps/platforms (DLAs) and lending service providers (LSPs) engaged by them.

The norms bar the presence of third-party accounts in the flow of lending, they prevent an automatic increase in credit limits and consent-based use of borrower data among other changes. So how ready is the system to comply, and what will this mean for the digital lending ecosystem?

To discuss this, Startup Street spoke to Sugandh Saxena, CEO of the Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment or FACE, and Anurag Jain, founder and ED at KredX and founding member of the Digital Lenders Association of India.

Watch video for more.

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

RBI’s modified digital lending norms to come in effect from December 1

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

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The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) modified guidelines on digital lending that seek to protect customers from exorbitant interest rates by certain entities and also check unethical loan recovery practices will come into effect from Thursday.

Under the new norms, all loan disbursals and repayments are required to be executed only between the bank accounts of the borrower and the regulated entities (like banks and NBFCs) without any pass-through/ pool account of the Lending Service Providers (LSPs).

Also, “any fees, charges, etc, payable to LSPs in the credit intermediation process shall be paid directly by RE and not by the borrower”, the Reserve Bank said in a press release while conveying the regulatory stance.

Executive chairman of Andromeda Loans, V Swaminathan, said, that since digital loans and online repayments have gained more prominence post-pandemic, the need of the hour is competent systems and processes that would further strengthen data privacy and security of confidential information shared between customers and regulated entities.

Also Read: RBI to launch the first pilot of retail digital Rupee on December 1

“While the cost of compliance may be significant for businesses that haven’t revamped their core business models, we need to trust the central bank as it tackles government issues and consumer complaints related to digital lending platforms, such as the deployment of arbitrary collection strategies,” he said.

While issuing the guidelines in August, the RBI had said the instructions are applicable to the ‘existing customers availing fresh loans’ and to ‘new customers getting onboarded’.

Anil Pinapala, CEO and founder of Vivifi Finances said the RBI has standardised the cost disclosures with a uniform Key Fact Statement (KFS) that details an all-in APR (Annual Percentage Rate), which factors in all the fees and interest that are being charged to the customers, empowering them with the ability to compare this rate across banks and NBFCs.

“Licensed and compliant players will have an edge over fintechs with other NBFC partnerships, and are likely to see rising market share in the future,” Pinapala said, and added the decision by the RBI will protect the consumer and level the playing field from the customer’s perspective.

Nageen Kommu, founder and CEO of Digitap said the RBI’s guidelines on digital lending is a crucial development in the credit ecosystem, considering the rapid rise of profound credit tools and the country’s progressive financial inclusion imperative.

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“The guidelines which aim to tackle concerns like unscrupulous lending practises and involvement of third parties, mis-selling and data privacy. We have witnessed fintech players, making requisite tweaks in their business models to stay compliant with the RBI’s guidelines. Some players have updated their terms of agreements as well as related processes,” said Kommu.

Issuing a detailed set of guidelines for digital lending, the RBI mentioned the concerns primarily related to unbridled engagement of third parties, mis-selling, breach of data privacy, unfair business conduct, charging of exorbitant interest rates, and unethical recovery practices.

The RBI had constituted a Working Group on ‘digital lending including lending through online platforms and mobile applications’ (WGDL) on January 13, 2021.

The Reserve Bank’s regulatory framework is focused on the digital lending ecosystem of RBI’s Regulated Entities (REs) and Lending Service Providers (LSPs) engaged by them to extend various permissible credit facilitation services.

Under the new norms, an automatic increase in credit limit without the explicit consent of the borrower is prohibited.

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RBI-regulated entities will have to ensure that they and the LSPs engaged by them have a suitable nodal grievance redressal officer to deal with FinTech/ digital lending-related complaints.

“Such grievance redressal officers shall also deal with complaints against their respective DLAs. The details of the grievance redressal officer shall be prominently indicated on the website of the RE, its LSPs, and on DLAs, as applicable,” the guidelines said.

Digital Lending Apps (DLAs) refer to mobile and web-based applications with user interface that facilitate borrowing by a borrower from a digital lender. DLAs will include apps of REs as well as operated by LSPs which are engaged by REs for extension of any credit facilitation services.

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