Foodtech major Zomato on Tuesday (July 2) said that its wholly-owned subsidiary Zomato Financial Services Limited (ZFCL) has decided to voluntarily withdraw its application with the Reserve Bank of India to operate as an non-banking financial company (NBFC).

In an exchange filing, the company said that it no longer wishes to pursue the lending/credit business.

The decision to withdraw the application was taken by the board of directors of ZFSL at a meeting held on July 2, the filings showed.

The company further said that the move will have no material impact on its revenues and operations.

The development comes days after Zomato’s subsidiary Zomato Payment Private Limited (ZPPL) surrendered its payment aggregator licence.

It is pertinent to note that Zomato, earlier this year, was said to be in talks with multiple NBFCs to offer working capital loans to its partner restaurants.

While Zomato incorporated ZFCL in 2022, ZPPL was incorporated in 2021, as part of the company’s broader digital lending plans.

The development comes at a time when the RBI has been cracking down on NBFC companies and certain fintechs due to lapses in governance and regulatory compliance.

Earlier this year, the RBI issued draft papers to regulate online payment aggregators, mandating physical KYC verification for merchant onboarding.  

Meanwhile, shares of Zomato touched an all-time high of INR 209.80 during Tuesday’s intraday trading session on the BSE.

The surge in the stock’s price came after Zomato announced that it has received approval from its shareholders to create a new employee stock option pool of 18.26 Cr shares.

Earlier this week, Zomato was slapped with a goods and services tax (GST) demand notice of INR 9.45 Cr by the Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes (Audit) in Karnataka.

Last month, the company launched a new platform in a bid to support restaurants in the recruitment process, as part of its broader portfolio expansion plans. 

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Trouble seems to be mounting for BYJU’S as now Karnataka Labour Minister Santosh Lad has asked the embattled edtech startup to settle the overdue salaries of its former employees “at the earliest”.

During a meeting with the representatives of BYJU’S parent entity Think and Learn Pvt Ltd, the minister flagged concerns over the outstanding dues owed to its former employees, Moneycontrol reported.

As per the report, Lad told BYJU’S officials to “settle at least 50% of the dues owed to former employees at the earliest” and sought assurance from the company that it will settle the remaining dues in due time.

BYJU’S has reportedly informed the Karnataka government that its funds are currently kept in an escrow account with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

It is to be noted that the NCLT earlier barred BYJU’S from using the proceeds from the second rights issue and asked it to park the funds in a separate account till the settlement of the case.

The hearing on the plea is scheduled for Thursday (July 4).

The edtech company has reportedly pledged to clear all dues owed to former employees within a month of receiving a relief order from the NCLT.

Inc42 has reached out to BYJU’S for a comment on the development. The story will be updated based on the response.

This comes after Karnataka’s labour department reportedly received a barrage of complaints from about 160-200 former BYJU’S employees, alleging the edtech firm had not settled dues worth nearly INR 4.5 Cr owed to them, even months after their termination.

It was earlier reported that founder and CEO Byju Raveendran took personal debt to clear part of the overdue employee salaries for the month of March.

Meanwhile, BYJU’S has also cut fixed salaries of new hires by 90%, sources told Inc42.

Once the world’s most-valued edtech firm, BYJU’S has been facing pressure from all directions from shrinking revenues to funding vacuum and consequent mass layoffs to legal trouble with the NCLT and probe by the Enforcement Directorate.

Last week, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs said that the probe into potential governance lapses at BYJU’S was still “ongoing” and that reports claiming the edtech major had been cleared of financial fraud were “inaccurate and misleading.”

Last month, US-based asset management company Baron Capital cut BYJU’S valuation by more than 99% to $120 Mn as of March 31, 2024.

Adding to its woes, Netherlands-based Prosus, which holds a 9.6% stake in BYJU’S, wrote off its entire investment in the edtech firm.

Furthermore, OPPO has moved the NCLT, alleging BYJU’S owes the smartphone manufacturer INR 13 Cr.

The post Karnataka Labour Minister Asks BYJU’S To Resolve Dues Of Former Staff appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Shares of Zomato jumped more than 3% to reach an all-time high of INR 209.75 apiece during the intraday trading today (July 2) after the foodtech major received shareholders’ approval to create a new employee stock option pool of 18.26 Cr shares. 

The stock opened today at INR 203.45 per share, marking a 0.3% decline from the previous close.

After hitting a record high, the stock shed some gains and was trading 1.37% higher at INR 206.85 apiece on the BSE at 12:06 PM.

The price surge came on the heels of an announcement by Zomato that it has secured approval from its shareholders to formulate, adopt and implement a new employee stock option plan, Zomato ESOP 2024, to grant 18.26 Cr employee stock options, as per regulatory filings.

The food delivery giant in May said that Zomato ESOP 2024 will entitle the employee for one fully paid-up equity share of face value of INR 1 each against each ESOP exercised.

As per the stock’s opening price on Tuesday, the ESOP plan would translate to shares worth nearly INR 3714.9 Cr.

Zomato clocked a 26% sequential growth in consolidated net profit to INR 175 Cr for the quarter ended March 2024. Its consolidated net profit in Q3 FY24 stood at INR 138 Cr.

It is pertinent to note that global brokerage Morgan Stanley last month reiterated its overweight call on Zomato, setting a price target of INR 235 apiece, which implies an upside of 13% from the stock’s last close on Monday.

Overall, the stock has jumped 4.5% in the last five days.

Earlier this week, Zomato said it has been slapped with a goods and services tax (GST) demand notice of INR 9.45 Cr by the Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes (Audit) in Karnataka.

Meanwhile, the company has launched a new platform in a bid to support restaurants in the recruitment process, as part of its broader portfolio expansion plans. 

The post Zomato Shares Touch An All-Time High After ESOP Plan Gets Shareholders’ Nod appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Delhi NCR-based traveltech company RateGain has expanded its employee stock option plan (ESOP) pool by allocating 59,904 shares to the employees.

In an exchange filing on Monday (July 1), the company said it has allotted 23,880 equity shares to its employees under RateGain ESOP 2015 and 36,024 equity shares under the Stock Appreciation Rights Scheme – 2022.

“We hereby inform that the Nomination and Remuneration Committee of the Company vide its resolution dated July 01, 2024 approved the allotment to the eligible employee(s) of the Company of 23,880 Equity Shares of face value of Re. 1/- each, under RateGain Employee Stock Option Scheme – 2015 (‘ESOP 2015’) and 36,024 Equity Shares of face value of Re. 1/- each under RateGain – Stock Appreciation Rights Scheme – 2022 (‘SAR 2022’),” the filing said.

Consequent to the allotment, the paid-up share capital of RateGain will climb to INR 11.79 Cr from INR 11.78 Cr earlier.

As per the stock’s opening price on Tuesday, the newly-allotted ESOPs are worth nearly INR 4.49 Cr.

Founded in 2004 by Bhanu Chopra, RateGain is a global provider of SaaS solutions for travel and hospitality enabling them to accelerate revenue growth through acquisition, retention and wallet share expansion. The company claims it caters to more than 3,200 customers and has a presence in over 100 countries.

The development comes against the backdrop of reports that RateGain founder’s family members — Megha Chopra, its promoter, and Usha Chopra, part of its promoter group,  sold 3% of their total holding of 51.25% in March.

RateGain saw a more than two-fold jump in its net profit to INR 146.39 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 68.40 Cr in FY23.

Meanwhile, revenue from operations grew 36% year-on-year to INR 255.81 Cr during the period under review versus INR 187.72 Cr in the previous fiscal.

It is pertinent to note that several new-age tech companies are banking on ESOPs to remake their employer brand image as job seekers become increasingly reluctant to join startups amid mass layoffs within the system.

A number of Indian startups such Delhivery, Paytm, Policybazaar, ideaForge and Nykaa have leaned on ESOPs recently to woo employees back to the startup ecosystem.

The post RateGain Expands ESOP Pool, Allots Shares Worth INR 4.5 Cr appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Former SoftBank managing partner Lydia Jett has rejoined Flipkart’s board as an independent director, a regulatory filing by the company showed.

Moneycontrol reported the development first.

Jett had been representing SoftBank’s Vision Fund on Flipkart’s board since 2017. However, she departed from the company’s board after stepping down from the managing partner position at SoftBank Investment Advisers in February 2024.

It is pertinent to note that SoftBank had sold its almost 20% of stake in Flipkart to Walmart in 2018 but returned to its captable with a co-investment of $3.6 Mn in 2021.

Jett will be the newest addition to Flipkart’s board, which includes Flipkart group chief executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy, HDFC chief executive Keki Mistry, along with senior Walmart executives.

The development comes amid senior management reshuffle and mass layoffs at Flipkart as the company shifts its focus to profit.

Earlier this year, Flipkart cofounder Binny Bansal stepped down from the company’s board due to a conflict of interest between his new B2B startup OppDoor and Flipkart.

The same month, reports said that Flipkart was planning to eliminate 5-7% of its workforce to cut costs.

Speaking at an investor conference in London last month, Walmart’s chief financial officer (CFO) David Rainey said Flipkart witnessed double-digit growth during the quarter ended April 2024 (Q4 FY24), adding that the ecommerce giant was on “path to profitability”.

Flipkart recently made its second bet on India’s fintech space with the beta launch of Super.Money. The app allows users to make UPI transactions and offers cashback returns of up to 10% on Flipkart, Myntra and Shopsy.

Amid a rise in demand for instant delivery services, Flipkart is also planning to make its foray into the quick commerce space to take on the likes of Swiggy Instamart, Blinkit and Zepto.

The post Former SoftBank Managing Partner Lydia Jett Rejoins Flipkart’s Board appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Home furnishing startup Wify has closed its Pre-Series A funding round at INR 40 Cr (around $5 Mn).

The Mumbai-based startup closed the round in two tranches. In the first leg, it raised $2 Mn (around $15 Cr) in 2022 from Blume Founders Fund and Singularity Ventures among others.

Meanwhile, in the second leg it secured INR 25 Cr (around $3 Mn) co-led by Mount Judi Ventures and existing backer Capria Ventures.

The company plans to use the fresh capital to shore up its existing offerings by adding more value-added services, expand into newer categories and strengthen its technology. A part of the proceeds will also be deployed to ramp up hiring efforts across the management team.

“This funding will help accelerate our growth through technology deployment and inorganic growth opportunities. It will help realize our vision of becoming the number 1 brand for upgradation, repair, and maintenance of urban homes,” said cofounder and CEO Vikram Sharma.

Founded in 2019 by Sharma and Deepanshu Goel, Wify is a full stack B2B and B2C enterprise tech startup that offers on-site installation and post-purchase home furnishing services. 

The startup helps brands manage their customer orders throughout product life cycle. It also provides worker upskilling and enables them to perform home furnishing services. 

Wify counts IKEA, Amazon, Livspace, Godrej, HomeLane and Hettich among its portfolio clients.

Additionally, it is planning to leverage generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) for training and onboarding of technicians and enhance user experience.

The startup competes against the likes of Livspace, HomeLane and Kraftinn among others in the home furnishing sector.

India’s home decor market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.14% to reach a valuation of $40.98 Bn by 2028, as per data from Research Markets.

Recently, it was reported that furnishing startup Vaaree was looking to raise INR 20.78 Cr ($2.5 Mn) in a Pre-Series A funding round.

In another instance, home renovation and interiors platform Livspace turned unicorn in 2022 after raising $180 Mn in its Series F round led by private equity group KKR. Now, it is planning a reverse flip to India with an IPO in sight.

The post Wify Closes Pre-Series A At INR 40 Cr With Backing From Mount Judi Ventures, Others appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Meta-owned photo and video-sharing app Instagram was down for several minutes on Saturday, rendering thousands of users globally unable to access the platform.

More than 6,000 users in India reported issues with accessing the platform at the peak of outage at around 12:08 PM today, as per Downdetector, a website that tracks user reports of internet disruptions.

Of these, 57% of these complaints were about Instagram’s feed, 33% of users reported issues with accessing the app and 10% of users said they were facing server connection issues.

Several users turned to social media platform X to vent out their frustration with many complaining that Instagram’s short-video platform Reels failed to load and began displaying error messages.

The cause of the outage remains unknown and there is no official statement yet from Instagram on the outage.

This is not the first time that Meta has been hit by an outage. Earlier this year in March, two Meta-owned apps, Instagram and WhatsApp, blinked out for several hours, leaving local businesses in lurch.

Prior to that, in April last year, some Indian WhatsApp users faced disruption as they were unable to download videos on the app. In October 2022, WhatsApp suffered a two-hour service outage, prompting the company to issue a clarification to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

India is home to the largest user base to Meta’s family of apps. While Facebook has 378 million users in India, WhatsApp 478 Mn and Instagram 362 Mn, as per global data and business intelligence platform Statista.

A large number of local businesses are reliant on services offered by these apps and frequent outages do not augur well for them. For instance, India has services like Meesho, where sellers are hugely dependent on communication through instant messaging app WhatsApp.

The post Instagram Outage Hits Thousands Of Users Globally, Reels Displaying Error Messages appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Mumbai-based fintech major Hitachi Payment Services is the latest in a string of companies to become a licenced payment aggregator (PA) in India.

The company on Thursday (June 27) said it has received final authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as an online payment aggregator.

“This significant landmark enables the company to expand its digital solutions & services stack to encompass a comprehensive suite of innovative and merchant friendly payment options including UPI, Netbanking, Cards and Wallets along with value-added services such as EMI, Paylater, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL), Link Based payments and loyalty solutions to merchants,” the statement said.

Founded in 2008, Hitachi Payment provides end-to-end payments and commerce solutions to financial institutions. Its offerings include UPI solutions, SoftPOS, value added services, AI & ML based solutions, next-gen mobile based merchant platform, UPI ATM on android platform and upgradable ATM.

The company claims it currently processes more than 2.5 Bn digital transactions annually for some of India’s leading banks and fintechs. Last year, Hitachi Payment launched its accelerator programme, HPX, to partner with fintech startups in the country to further innovation in the digital payment sector.

 The development comes at a time when a slew of companies have been making a beeline to secure PA licences from the RBI even as the regulator has proposed stringent regulations for online payment firms, which could increase their compliance burden and operational cost. 

In April, fintech unicorn CRED received in-principle from the RBI for its PA application. In May, French digital payments major Worldline’s India arm, Worldline ePayments India Pvt Ltd, also jumped the PA bandwagon.

In fact, since December last year, the RBI has greenlit the PA applications of more than 20 companies including the likes of Groww, Zoho, Juspay, Decentro, CRED, PayU, Enkash, Pine Labs, Amazon Pay, Innoviti, Razorpay, CC Avenue, Cashfree, Tata Pay, Google Pay, Infibeam Avenues, Mswipe, among others.

Earlier this year in April, the RBI issued draft papers to regulate online payment aggregators and sought feedback and comments from fintechs and industry bodies.

In response, a number of fintechs have voiced their concerns over the mandatory physical KYC verification requirement for merchants in the draft rules. 

While fintech players like Decentro have reportedly demanded a rollback of the contact point verification (CPV) requirement, there are some who want the RBI to limit physical KYC verification to “high-risk merchants.”

The post Now, Hitachi Payment Services Gets Payment Aggregator Licence From RBI appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Amid the surge in initial public offerings (IPOs) in the Indian market, education-focussed non-banking financial company (NBFC) Avanse Financial Services filed its draft red herring prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) last week. 

The company’s IPO will comprise a fresh issue of INR 1,000 Cr and an offer for sale (OFS) of shares worth up to INR 2,500 Cr.

Shares of Avanse will get listed on the BSE and the NSE.

The NBFC will use the proceeds from the fresh issue to increase its capital base to fuel further expansion of its business.

Notably, Avanse clocked a net profit of INR 342.4 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), while revenue from operations grew to INR 1,726.9 Cr during the period.

The DRHP comes at a time when a number of new-age tech startups, including Awfis, ixigo, and Go Digit, have listed on the exchanges this year. Besides, the likes of Ola Electric, Unicommerce, MobikWik, and FirstCry are also looking to go public later this year.

As Avanse gears up for its public listing, let’s take a look at the shareholding pattern and people at the helm of the IPO-bound NBFC.

Who Owns How Much Stake In Avanse?

As per the draft papers, Warburg Pincus’ affiliate Olive Vine Investment is the largest shareholder in Avanse with a 58.38% stake.

Mumbai-based private equity firm Kedaara Capital, which has backed startups like Lenskart, Purplle and K12 Techno Services, is the second largest shareholder in Avanse with a 13.82% stake.

International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank, which owns 11.36% stake in the company. 

Alpha Investment Company LLC, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala, holds a 10.11% stake, while Kedaara Pichola owns a 3.60% stake in Avanse.

Key Managerial Personnel and Senior Management Of AvanseAmit Gainda – Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer

Amit Gainda took over as the CEO of Avanse Financial Services in April 2017 and is credited with transforming the company into a customer-centric, digitally-agile, sustainable and profit-driven NBFC.

He is also a member of several industry committees such as NBFC Council of Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), NBFC Council of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), India CEO Forum of International Market Assessment India Pvt. Ltd. (IMA-India) and Finance Industry Development Council (FIDC).

He earned his masters in business management from INSEAD and International Management Institute, New Delhi and has prior experience working with GE Money Financial Services,  Bajaj Auto Finance, Citicorp Credit Services India, Dewan Housing Finance Corporation and SB Leasing and Finance.

Vikrant Virendra Gandhi – Chief Financial Officer

A commerce graduate of the University of Bombay, Vikram Virendra Gandhi is responsible for managing financial accounting and reporting, treasury, financial planning and business analytics, governance framework, secretarial and taxation at Avanse.

Gandhi also holds a postgraduate diploma in treasury & forex management from the Association of Certified Treasury Managers and took home a total remuneration of INR 74.6 Lakh FY24. 

Prior to joining Avanse in 2019, he worked with ICICI Home Finance Company and ICICI Bank.

Rajesh Pravinkumar Gandhi – Company Secretary and Compliance officer

A commerce graduate of Saurashtra University in Rajkot, Rajesh Pravinkumar Gandhi oversees the secretarial functions at Avanse. He was paid a total remuneration of INR 33.1 Lakh in FY24.

He is also an associate member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India and has expertise in managing regulatory compliance and secretarial requirements in the banking, financial services and insurance sector.

Prior to joining Avanse, he worked with companies such as Reliance Asset Construction Company, Aditya Birla ARC, India Infoline, SPA Global and Edelweiss Commodities.

Vivek Kumar Baranwal – Chief Business Officer Of Education Loans & Domestic Business 

An IIM Kolkata alumnus and commerce graduate of the University of Calcutta, Vivek Kumar Baranwal joined Avanse Financial in 2017 and was elevated to the position of chief business officer in June 2024. 

In his current role, Baranwal oversees the business strategy, credit risk, and collections of the educational institution loans and domestic education loans vertical.

In FY24, Baranwal received total remuneration to the tune of INR 2.41 Cr. Before joining Avanse, he worked with Reliance Capital and Reliance Commercial Finance.

Rajesh Narayan Kachave – Chief Business Officer Of Student Lending International Business

An arts graduate of the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University in Aurangabad, Rajesh Narayan Kachave has been associated with Avanse since 2017. He was promoted to the position of chief business officer in June 2024 and currently oversees the student financing business of the company.

Kachave received a total remuneration of INR 2.06 Cr in FY24. He previously worked with HDFC Bank.

Samir Kumar Mohanty – Chief Technology & Digital Transformation Officer

Samir Kumar Mohanty is responsible for implementing tech-led initiatives, digitising processes, and adopting emerging technology to enhance business efficiency and governance at Avanse. He received a total compensation package of INR 2.89 Cr in FY24.

Mohanty earned a post graduate diploma in business administration from ICFAI Business School, Hyderabad. He also completed the leadership in Fulbright-Nehru-CII fellowship for management program from the Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Pennsylvania. 

Prior to joining Avanse, Mohanty was associated with Tata Financial Services.

Amit Yadav – Chief Strategy Officer and Head Special Projects

A chemical engineering graduate from University of Roorkee, Amit Yadav joined Avanse in 2017 and was re-designated as the chief strategy officer and head special projects in 2020 for a five-year term. He received a remuneration of INR 73.7 Lakh in FY24.

Yadav also holds an MBA from Georgia State University and has previously worked at Religare Support Services.

Ganesh Raghuraman Iyer – Chief Audit Officer

A commerce graduate of the University of Mumbai, Ganesh Raghuram Iyer handles management insurance and audit functions of the company. He was paid a total remuneration of INR 89.8 Lakh in FY24.

Prior to joining Avanse, Iyer worked with Tata Capital Financial Services and DBOI Global Services.

Sorabh Malhotra – Chief Risk Officer 

Sorabh Malhotra joined Avanse in 2022 and currently heads the risk function of the company. He received a remuneration of INR 1.56 Cr in FY24.

Malhotra pursued his bachelor’s degree in commerce from the University of Delhi and also has a postgraduate diploma in management from Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management, Delhi. He worked with companies such as NeoGrowth Credit, Bajaj Finance, Cholamandalam DBS Finance and Capital First in the past.

Yogesh Rawat – Chief Operating Officer

An MBA graduate of IIT Bombay and Washington University in St. Louis, Yogesh Rawat is responsible for the operational effectiveness of the processes of the value chain at Avanse. He took home a remuneration of INR 1.44 Cr in FY24.

He is also an associate member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and has previously worked with ICICI Home Finance Company and GE Money Financial Services.

Rajiv Kumar – Chief Compliance Officer

Rajiv Kumar has been serving as the chief financial officer of Avanse since November 2022 and was paid a remuneration of INR 87.9 Lakh in FY24.

He holds a master’s degree in commerce from Annamalai University, Annamalainagar and is an associate member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India.

Prior to joining Avanse, Kumar worked with Fullerton India Credit Company Limited, India Infoline Finance and Bajaj Finance.

Achal Goel – Chief People Officer 

A computer engineering graduate of Maharshi Dayanand University, Achal Goel leads the human resource team and is responsible for developing and implementing best practices, policies and procedures to support employees of the company.

Goel also holds an MBA degree from the University of Delhi and has previously worked with Kotak Mahindra Bank and Citibank. He was paid a total remuneration of INR 63.2 Lakh in FY24.

The post Avanse Financial DRHP: Decoding Shareholding Pattern & Key People At The Helm appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Prosus-owned digital payments giant PayU India’s credit service LazyPay has partnered with Blinkit to facilitate its users with one tap mobile payments.

With the introduction of LazyPay’s advanced payment solution, Blinkit users will now be able to get a credit line, with no additional cost to merchants.

Additionally, Blinkit merchants will gain access to LazyPay’s payment mode and dashboard, enabling them to monitor business performance more efficiently.

“By integrating LazyPay’s advanced payment solutions with Blinkit’s platform, we enable customers to utilize their credit line through a seamless and secure platform. This partnership aligns perfectly with our mission to provide swift, reliable, and secure ‘Pay Later’ services, streamlining digital payments,” said Niket Shrivastava, head of merchant business at LazyPay.

With the Blinkit addition, LazyPay has expanded its portfolio of quick commerce clients, which includes Swiggy Instamart, Zepto and Big Basket.

PayU India enables businesses to collect online and offline payments via more than 150 payment modes, including debit cards, credit cards, net banking, BNPL, QR, UPI, EMIs, and wallets. It competes with the likes of Razorpay and Cashfree in India.

In 2017, PayU entered the consumer credit segment with LazyPay, a lending platform which offers point-of-sale credit solutions.

The development comes at a time when PayU India is looking to make its stock market debut. As per media reports, the fintech giant could file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Commission of India (SEBI) this year for an initial public offering of at least $500 Mn.

In April, PayU India received an in-principle authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a payment aggregator (PA). The nod allowed the company to onboard new merchants for its payments business. 

Earlier this week, Dutch investment company Prosus, in its annual 2024 report, said that PayU India posted a 11% year-on-year (YoY) jump in its revenue to $444 Mn in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24).

The growth in revenue came primarily on the back of the rise in volumes from its existing merchant user base and growing “value added” services.

While PayU India’s total payment value (TPV) rose 22% YoY in FY24, its payment service provider business logged a 3% trading loss as against a 3% trading profit in the previous year.

The post PayU’s LazyPay Integrates With Blinkit To Enable One Tap Mobile Payments For Customers appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Amid increasing adoption of cryptocurrency in India, crypto derivatives platform Delta Exchange has formally launched its operations in the country to offer crypto futures and options trading.

Delta Exchange said in a statement that it is fully compliant and has registered with India’s Financial Intelligence Unit, as per regulatory norms.

With this launch, Delta Exchange has become the first platform in India to offer options trading on crypto assets such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) among others.

The company said its platform, Delta Exchange India, will allow users to settle trades in local currency (INR), and enable seamless and instant INR deposit and withdrawals.

Furthermore, traders will be able to operate on the derivative exchange without the need of holding stablecoins or any other crypto tokens. 

Delta Exchange India said it will not allow crypto deposits and withdrawals, doing away with the risks related to crypto custody.

Cofounder and CEO Pankaj Balani said, “Delta Exchange’s unique platform focuses on select crypto derivatives, thus eliminating the need to park crypto assets for trading, allowing users to trade with confidence.”

“This approach ensures that both seasoned traders and newcomers can explore the opportunities in crypto derivatives within a secure and compliant environment. Additionally, it allows traders to deal in INR only, making the process smooth and transparent,” Balani added.

Founded in 2018 by Balani, Jitender Tokas and Saurabh Goyal, Delta Exchange offers futures, perpetual and options trading for BTC, ETC and leading altcoins.

Delta Exchange counts CoinFund, Sandeep Nailwal’s family office, Aave, Kyber Network and SinoGlobal Capital among its backers. 

Delta Exchange’s India platform reached 1 Lakh users just two months after its beta launch, with daily trading volume hitting $300 Mn at its peak, the company said.

Delta Exchange’s India entry comes at a time when the government has tightened its oversight of the crypto sector and imposed hefty penalties on offshore crypto exchanges for skirting anti-money laundering laws.

Earlier this month, the FIU slapped a fine of INR 18.82 Cr (around $2.25 Mn) on crypto exchange Binance for flouting the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).

In January, the Centre banned top foreign crypto platforms such as Binance, KuCoin and OKX among others amid concerns that these platforms were being used for money laundering and tax evasion.

In December last year, the FIU sent show-cause notices to nine offshore crypto exchanges for allegedly illegally operating in the country and non-compliance with India’s anti-money laundering laws.

These offshore crypto exchanges were not registered with the FIU as virtual asset service providers.

The post Delta Exchange Starts India Operations, To Offer Crypto Futures & Options Trading appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The Karnataka High Court has directed the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to take a fresh call on its April 24 order that allowed the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) access to confidential information on Swiggy’s business practices.

Justice SR Krishna Kumar on Wednesday asked the CCI to “expeditiously” decide on the report access after Swiggy filed a petition against India’s competition regulator’s order, calling it “arbitrary” and arguing that allowing the NRAI access to sensitive information could harm its business, Bar and Bench reported.

While Justice Kumar directed the antitrust watchdog to take a decision promptly, he did not fix any specific timeline.

The matter stems from the CCI’s April 2022 investigation into Swiggy and Zomato, based on a complaint filed by the NRAI in 2021 that alleged that the food delivery giants engaged in anticompetitive practices such as bundling of services, exorbitant commissions, delayed payment cycle and imposition of one-sided clauses.

The NRAI had also alleged that both Swiggy and Zomato indulged in deep discounting which hurt the interests of local restaurants, as well as argued that these pricing practices violated platform neutrality.

It is pertinent to note that Zomato and Swiggy have a near duopoly in the food delivery market, with Zomato extending its lead over Swiggy with a 56-57% market share.

After conducting a probe into these allegations, the CCI’s Director General (DG) compiled a detailed report containing confidential information concerning the business practices of Swiggy and Zomato.

While the CCI shared the confidential findings with a specific set of people at the time, on April 24 this year, the antitrust watchdog passed an order giving the NRAI’s representatives access to the report as well.

Consequently, Swiggy petitioned the Karnataka High Court last month against the CCI’s April 24 order, reportedly arguing that the decision violated the regulator’s obligation to preserve confidential information under Section 57 of the Competition Act, 2022 and Regulation 25 of the Competition Commission of India (General) Regulations, 2009. 

The development comes amid reports that Walmart-backed ecommerce major Flipkart previously held talks with Swiggy to acquire a stake in the foodtech company.

Meanwhile, Swiggy is gearing up for its public listing. Earlier this year, the company received board approval for a INR 10,400 Cr ($1.25 Bn) public issue, comprising a fresh issue of shares worth INR 3,750 Cr ($450 Mn) and an offer for sale (OFS) component of INR 6,664 Cr ($800 Mn). 

In the run up to its IPO, Swiggy aggressively cut costs, streamlined operations and scaled up revenues. Earlier this week, Prosus, in its 2024 annual report, said that Swiggy posted a 24% year-on-year (YoY) jump in its revenue in the calendar year 2023, excluding mergers and acquisitions, largely on the back of a 26% YoY increase in gross order value (GOV). 

Earlier this year, Inc42 reported that Swiggy was set to clock about INR 10K Cr in revenue in FY24, fueled by the rise in its Instamart orders and platform fees related to food delivery.

The post Karnataka HC Orders CCI To ‘Expeditiously’ Decide On Swiggy’s Confidential Data Sharing appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Reliance Retail’s digital commerce arm JioMart has reportedly rolled out a pilot for instant delivery of groceries and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) products in some parts of Mumbai and Navi Mumbai.

The service is now live on the JioMart app under the ‘hyperlocal delivery’ section. While JioMart will deliver orders within an hour in the initial stages, it plans to reduce the delivery time to 30-45 minutes at a later stage, the Economic Times reported.

JioMart also intends to gradually expand its quick commerce delivery service to include apparel and electronic items.

Inc42 has reached out to Reliance Retail for a comment on the development. The story will be updated on receiving a response.

Unlike Zomato-owned Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart and Zepto, which have embraced a dark store model for their quick commerce operations, JioMart will bank on Reliance Retail’s network of over 18,000 stores across the country for fulfilling these orders.

The company is reportedly leveraging technology platforms Fynd and Locus for order fulfilment and optimisation of delivery routes.

Reliance Retail’s chief executive for grocery business, Damodar Mall, and JioMart’s chief executive Sandeep Varaganti are part of an interdepartmental team tasked with overseeing the quick commerce operations.

The company plans to scale up its team as the service gradually expands to other cities and more categories get added.

The development comes nearly a month after reports surfaced about Reliance Industries planning a foray into the quick commerce segment.

At the time, reports suggested that JioMart would roll out grocery delivery service in 7-8 cities in the initial stages, with plans to take it to around 1,000 cities in future.

It is pertinent to note that this is not JioMart’s first attempt to enter the quick commerce space. It previously offered 90-minute grocery delivery services through JioMart Express, which was shuttered last year.

Its re-entry into quick commerce comes at a time when the other players in the space are sprucing up their product catalogue amid a surge in demand for instant delivery services.

Earlier this year, Zomato-owned Blinkit launched a new category to deliver sports and fitness essentials from top brands like Adidas, Boldfit and boAt among others. Blinkit’s rivals – Zepto and Swiggy Instamart – have also been expanding their product portfolio. 

The competition in the space is expected to heat up further as Walmart-owned Flipkart is set to launch quick commerce offerings across Delhi, Bengaluru, and Mumbai.

According to a report, the Indian quick commerce industry’s gross merchandise value shot up 77% year-on-year to $2.8 Bn in 2023. 

The post JioMart Rolls Out Pilot In Mumbai, Navi Mumbai For Grocery Delivery In An Hour appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Less than a week after Zepto raised $665 Mn from a clutch of investors at a valuation of $3.6 Bn, the quick commerce major is now looking to raise more funds at a higher valuation.

As per a report by The Information, the Mumbai-based startup is in talks with multiple investors to raise around $400 Mn at a likely valuation of $4.6 Bn.

This would be more than 25% higher than its previous valuation of $3.6 Bn when the startup raised $665 Mn last week from investors such as Glade Brook, Nexus, and Lightspeed among others.

Earlier, Zepto said that it will deploy the funds to double its dark store count to 700 by March 2025 from 350 currently.

Additionally, the company said that its GMV has exceeded $1 Bn, with approximately 75% of its stores achieving full EBITDA positivity as of May 2024. 

Founded in 2021 by Palicha and Vohora, Zepto has grown rapidly on the back of increasing demand for quick 10-minute deliveries. Last year, Zepto became the first unicorn of 2023 after raising $200 Mn in its Series E funding round.

The fundraising spree of Zepto comes at a time when it is planning to reverse flip to India and eyeing a public listing in 2026.

Zepto’s revenue surged 14.3X to INR 2,024.3 Cr in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23) from INR 140.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Net loss jumped 3.4X year-on-year to INR 1,272.4 Cr in FY23.

Zepto competes against the likes of Zomato-backed Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart in the quick commerce segment.

The competition in the space is set to intensify further with Walmart-owned Flipkart set to launch quick commerce offerings across Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai. Earlier, the ecommerce giant also held talks to acquire a majority stake in Zepto, but the talks fell through. 

Meanwhile, Tata Digital-owned BBnow is also mulling a major investment in the quick commerce space.

As per a report, the Indian quick commerce industry’s gross merchandise value zoomed 77% year-on-year to $2.8 Bn in 2023. 

The post Zepto In Talks With Investors To Raise Another $400 Mn At $4.6 Bn Valuation: Report appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs that investigated BYJU’s for potential corporate governance lapses could not find any evidence to prove that the edtech major committed financial fraud or accounting malpractice.

The year-long probe by the government into BYJU’s books revealed that the edtech major fell short on compliance issues but found no proof of wrongdoing such as siphoning of funds or manipulation of financial accounts, Bloomberg reported, citing sources.

The investigation found that weak corporate governance and compliance failures, coupled with the change in funding environment were the primary reasons behind the ballooning losses at BYJU’S.

Furthermore, the ministry also acknowledged that the Byju Raveendran-led startup failed to disclose full details of acquisitions with all directors and held meetings to approve such deals at a short notice.

However, the probe did not offer clarity on whether Raveendran is to blame for the government lapses personally, or if he is qualified to run the company.

The development comes a year after the corporate affairs ministry ordered an inspection into BYJU’S books after it failed to file its audited financials for the financial year ending March 2022 (FY22).

The findings are expected to bring some respite to BYJU’s that has been reeling from a series of challenges, including looming debt crisis, impending mass layoffs, delayed salaries, a cash crunch and a bevy of legal and insolvency cases filed by its investors and vendors.

Once the poster child of the Indian startup ecosystem, BYJU’s was valued at $22 Bn at its peak in 2021. However, earlier this month, US-based asset management company Baron Capital cut BYJU’s valuation by more than 99% to $120 Mn as of March 31, 2024.

Recently, Netherlands-based Prosus, which holds a 9.6% stake in BYJU’S, wrote off its entire investment in the Bengaluru-based edtech startup.

The edtech giant’s net loss widened by 81% to INR 8,245.2 Cr in FY22 from INR 4,564.3 Cr in FY21. Operating revenue rose over 120% year-on-year to INR 5,014.6 Cr during the year under review.

The post Govt Probe On BYJU’S Flags Corporate Governance Lapses: Report appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Spacetech startup Pixxel has inked a deal with the Ministry of Defence under the Innovations for Defense Excellence (iDEX) scheme to manufacture miniaturised multi-payload satellites for the Indian Air Force.

Pixxel’s miniaturised satellite will be capable of carrying electro-optical, infrared, synthetic aperture radar, and hyperspectral payloads of up to 150 kgs, the ministry said in a statement.

Founded in 2019 by Awais Ahmed and Kshitij Khandelwal, Pixxel is building a constellation of hyperspectral earth imaging satellites to provide insights to sectors like agriculture, mining, environment, among others.

The startup plans to launch six satellites, named Fireflies, in 2024 and 18 more by 2025. It was earlier reported that it would launch the first three satellites in June this year. The satellites will weigh around 50 kg each, significantly higher than the 15 kg weight of the demo satellites, Shakuntala and Anand, launched by Pixxel in 2022. 

It is pertinent to note that last year, Pixxel bagged a grant from iDEX to manufacture miniaturised multi-payload satellites for the Indian Air Force.

Launched in 2018, iDEX is the flagship initiative of the Ministry of Defence to encourage startups, MSMEs, and other private entities in the defence sector. iDEX reached a milestone by signing its 350th contract with Pixxel. 

“This 350th iDEX contract enables innovation in space electronics, wherein many payloads earlier deployed on dedicated large satellites are now being miniaturised. The modular small satellite will integrate multiple miniaturised payloads as per requirement, providing advantages like faster and economical deployment, ease of manufacturing, scalability, adaptability, and less environmental impact,” the ministry said.

The development comes at a time when the Indian government is increasingly looking at startups to enhance the country’s defence capabilities.

Earlier this month, the defence ministry announced that Noida-based startup Ingenious Research Solutions has developed an indigenous facial recognition system in collaboration with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

Prior to that, in March, Big Bang Boom Solutions, a deeptech startup working in the defence space, clinched an order worth over INR 200 Cr from the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army for its anti-drone technology.

With the Indian government encouraging private players in defence manufacturing, a number of startups have cropped up in the sector and are attracting investor interest.

Meanwhile, Pixxel is a part of the country’s rapidly growing spacetech ecosystem. It has raised a total funding of nearly $74 Mn till date and is backed by the likes of Google, Lightspeed and Blume Ventures among others.

As per Inc42 data, more than 150 spacetech startups raised over $285 Mn in funding between 2014 and 2023. The Indian spacetech market is poised to reach a size of over $77 Bn by 2030.

The post Pixxel Inks Deal With Defence Ministry To Manufacture Miniaturised Satellites appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Homegrown crypto exchange CoinDCX has introduced a Web3 mode within its app that will now enable users to buy digital assets in rupee.

According to the company, this Web3 integration will give users access to more than 50,000 emerging, trending and pre launch DeFi tokens from blockchain networks, including Solana, Polygon, Base and Binance Smart Chain among others.

The Web3 mode will facilitate purchase and transfer of tokens, including Ethereum (ETH), MATIC, Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC) in INR within the CoinDCX app, it added.

Besides, CoinDCX has also introduced a unified deposit and withdrawal mechanism, allowing users to seamlessly transfer funds between their CoinDCX wallets and the Web3 mode for virtual asset purchases.

“The launch of Web3 Mode marks a significant milestone in our mission to simplify Web3 access. This integration was made possible via Okto Chain. Last month, we introduced our fully expressive orchestration layer, a groundbreaking solution that holistically addresses chain Abstraction,” said Neeraj Khandelwal, cofounder of CoinDCX.

“In just a month, the first product using this technology is already live for CoinDCX users. CoinDCX users can now seamlessly interact with multiple chains, perform cross-chain token swaps, and confirm their identities across various networks—without dealing with the complexities of blockchain, which is made possible by chain abstraction powered by Okto’s ‘Orchestration’ Chain,” he added.

CoinDCX has also announced a points airdrop to reward its existing users. The company will dole out Okto points to users for each Web3 interaction with the app, based on their transaction history on the platform.

This comes days after CoinDCX unveiled CoinDCX Prime to offer personalised investment for high net worth individuals, family offices and institutional investors.

Founded by Sumit Gupta and Khandelwal in 2018, CoinDCX claims to have a user base of more than 1.5 crore. It offers easy access to Web3 experiences and democratise investments in virtual digital assets with user safety and security.

CoinDCX became the country’s first crypto unicorn in 2021 after raising $90 Mn in Series C from Facebook cofounder Eduardo Saverin’s B Capital Group, Coinbase Ventures, and others. 

It counts Pantera, Steadview Capital, Kingsway, Polychain Capital, B Capital Group, Bain Capital Ventures, Cadenza, Draper Dragon, Republic, Kindred, and Coinbase Ventures among its backers.

It was also reported earlier that CoinDCX was planning to launch an in-house blockchain and token to fuel DeFi adoption in the country.

Recently, CoinDCX also invested in crypto taxation platform KoinX in line with its plans to facilitate secure crypto trading experience for its users.

The post CoinDCX Rolls Out Web3 Mode To Facilitate Crypto Purchases In INR appeared first on Inc42 Media.

IPO-bound Swiggy posted a 24% jump in its revenue in the calendar year 2023, excluding mergers and acquisitions, Dutch investment firm Prosus said in its 2024 annual report.

Additionally, the foodtech decacorn saw a 26% year-on-year increase in gross order value (GOV) and its “ever transacted” user base touched the 104 Mn mark at the end of December 2023.

“Swiggy’s core food-delivery business, GOV, grew by double digits on healthy order growth and higher average order value. Operating leverage improved as the business added revenue streams like restaurant advertising and introduced nominal platform fees which supported improved operational profitability,” Prosus said.

Meanwhile, Swiggy’s quick commerce business Instamart clocked a higher GOV than that of the ecommerce industry, fueled by geographical penetration and stock-keeping unit expansion. Its unit economics continued to improve on the back of larger basket sizes, larger user base, and improved operational efficiency, the report added.

Earlier this year, Inc42 reported that Swiggy was poised to report about INR 10K Cr in revenue in FY24, fueled by the rise in its Instamart orders, platform fees related to food delivery, and growing popularity of its dining out business.

Swiggy primarily competes with Zomato in the food delivery industry. Like Instamart, Zomato also has a strong presence in the quick commerce segment via Blinkit. Zomato posted a profit of INR 351 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) as against a loss of INR 971 Cr in FY23. Operating revenue increased 67% year-on-year to INR 12,114 Cr during the last financial year. 

For Zomato, Blinkit has emerged as the key growth driver over the last few quarters, with the quick commerce segment seeing rapid growth in GOV and outpacing the food delivery business. 

The latest development comes at a time when Swiggy is gearing up for its public listing. In April, Swiggy filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India via the confidential route for its initial public offering.

The Bengaluru-based startup’s IPO offer will include fresh issue of shares worth INR 3,750.1 Cr (about $449 Mn) and an offer-for-sale component worth INR 6,664 Cr (around $799 Mn), as per regulatory filings.  

In May, Swiggy re-introduced its homestyle meal delivery service, Swiggy Daily, after a four-year hiatus.

Earlier this month, the Bengaluru-based startup also relaunched its gourmet grocery delivery service ‘Handpicked’. Last week, the company also rolled out a new initiative to help restaurants with staff recruitment.

In the run up to its public listing, US-based asset manager Baron Capital marked up Swiggy’s valuation by 25% to $15.1 Bn from $12.1 Bn earlier.

The post IPO-Bound Swiggy’s Revenue Soars 24% In 2023, GOV Jumps 26% YoY: Prosus appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Fintech major Paytm witnessed significant growth in its travel segment in the March quarter (Q4) of the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), with flight bookings surging 19% year-on-year (YoY), exceeding the industry average of around 3%.

In an exchange filing on Monday (June 24), the company said international flight bookings on the platform rose 15% YoY in the month of April, driven by global travel partnerships and robust travel solutions.

In November last year, Paytm joined hands with travel tech firm Amadeus, giving users access to a vast inventory of global flight options, including from carriers such as Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways among others.

The collaboration between Paytm and Amadeus automated travel operations for users by harnessing artificial intelligence.

In line with its expansion plans, the company has now on-boarded three more carriers, including Cambodia Angkor Air, SalamAir and FlyDubai, the filings showed.

“We are committed to expanding our travel business offerings and enhancing the overall customer experience. Our partnerships with global travel aggregators and leading airlines, combined with the integration of artificial intelligence, underscore our dedication to providing seamless, convenient, and competitive travel solutions,” a Paytm spokesperson said.

Paytm further claimed that it emerged as the second-largest online travel aggregator (OTA) in train bookings in terms of market share, propelled by features such as guaranteed seat assistance and easy tatkal bookings.

The platform has also partnered with bus operator Mettur to expand its service offerings and provide more travel options to users.

Its free cancellation service, where users can avail refunds on their tickets, has also seen robust growth in trains and buses, followed by flights, Paytm added.

This comes days after former Paytm employees filed complaints with the Labour Ministry, alleging “unlawful termination” without proper compensation.

Inc42 reported earlier that the fintech startup was forcing employees to resign voluntarily or face disciplinary action. At the time, many aggrieved employees also claimed that Paytm was looking to claw back the joining and retention bonuses of the employees. 

Paytm has found itself mired in myriad issues in recent times. The trouble started when the Reserve Bank of India ordered Paytm Payments Bank to wind down operations from March 2024.

The fintech major also saw a 2.9% (YoY) drop in its revenue to INR 2,267.10 Cr in Q4 FY24. Meanwhile, net loss surged 3X YoY to INR 550.5 Cr during the same period.

The post Paytm Sees 19% Jump In Flight Bookings in Q4 FY24 appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The applications of Elon Musk-led Starlink and Amazon-owned Project Kuiper for landing rights authorisation in the country are under the consideration of the Indian Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe). 

“Starlink and Amazon Kuiper’s applications seeking IN-SPACe authorisation for provisioning of their constellation capacity (in India) are under process,” IN-SPACe chairman Pawan Goenka told Economic Times.

Landing rights refers to the authorisation given to companies to use their satellites in the country. Starlink and Project Kupier are seeking the authorisation as they intend to provide satellite communications services in India.

While the two companies are yet to get their licences for starting satellite broadband services in India, the grant of landing rights would not hinge on approval from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Goenka added.

The DoT is yet to grant the global mobile personal communication by satellite services (GMPCS) licence to SpaceX and Amazon, which is the first step towards launching satcom services in India.

Furthermore, the government is yet to allocate spectrum for satellite broadband.

Meanwhile, Bharti Enterprises-backed Eutelsat OneWeb and Reliance Jio’s satcom venture Orbit Connect India have already secured GMPCS permits from the government.

Although Starlink applied for a permit in India in 2022, it has been facing a critical hurdle vis-à-vis ownership declaration. While granting a GMPCS licence to a company, India mandates a complete disclosure of ownership.

Starlink told the Indian government earlier that the US privacy laws ban it from sharing ownership details of SpaceX, its parent entity, which led to disagreements and, in turn, the cancellation of planned satcom service trials in the country. Later, Starlink has submitted a declaration regarding its ownership.

Earlier, it was reported that the DoT fast-tracked Starlink’s application ahead of Musk’s planned India visit. The department was said to be drawing up a letter of intent (LoI) and contemplating a trial spectrum for Starlink’s satellite communication services. However, Musk postponed his visit to India and there have been no further updates on its application

 Recently, India amended its policy to allow 100% FDI in the space sector, a move aimed at wooing investors to invest in Indian space companies.

As per Inc42’s analysis, India’s space sector is expected to reach $77 Bn by 2030, up from $15 Bn in 2023, clocking a CAGR of 26% during the period.

The post IN-SPACe Processing Starlink, Amazon-Owned Project Kuiper’s Landing Rights Applications appeared first on Inc42 Media.

B2B marketplace IndiaMART InterMESH has received the approval of its shareholders for the reappointment of Dinesh Chandra Agarwal as the managing director and chief executive officer of the company for another five years.

In an exchange filing, the company said it has received the approval from a majority of its shareholders for the reappointment of Agarwal.

Agarwal would serve as the MD and CEO of IndiaMART with effect from January 8, 2025 up to January 7, 2030, the company said.

It is pertinent to note that the company’s board approved Agarwal’s reappointment as MD and CEO in April this year, subject to shareholders’ approval. The company also rejigged its top management then, appointing Jitin Diwan as its new chief financial officer (CFO) from June 15. It said the then CEO Prateek Chandra would transition into a new role within the company as chief strategy officer.

Agarwal founded IndiaMART in 1996 and has served as its CEO for the last 28 years. 

Meanwhile, the company’s shareholders also approved the proposal to reappoint Brijesh Kumar Agarwal as the director of IndiaMART with effect from January 8, 2025 up to January 7, 2027. He is liable to retirement by rotation.

IndiaMART reported a 78% year-on-year (YoY) increase in its consolidated net profit in the March quarter (Q4) of FY24 to INR 99.6 Cr as against INR 55.8 Cr in the year-ago period.

Revenue from operations grew 17% to INR 314.7 Cr from INR 268.8 Cr in Q4 FY23. 

Last month, IndiaMART picked up a 10% stake in fraud detection startup Baldor Technologies for INR 89.7 Cr (about $10.7 Mn) via a secondary transaction.

Recently, domestic brokerage firm Nuvama Institutional Equities slashed its 12-month price target on IndiaMART to INR 2,650 from INR 2,800 earlier, citing its subdued subscriber addition rate.

Shares of IndiaMART closed 1.25% higher at INR 2648.80 apiece on the BSE on Friday.

The post IndiaMART Gets Shareholders’ Nod For Reappointment Of Dinesh Chandra Agarwal as MD, CEO appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Online stock trading platform Zerodha suffered yet another service outage on Friday (June 21), which prevented traders from accessing the platform for several minutes.

According to Downdetector, a service that tracks online outages, Zerodha was struck by an outage just before 10 AM, rendering users unable to place new stock trade orders or modify existing ones.

While 48% of the users were facing issues with Zerodha’s mobile app, 32% and 20% were unable to access the website and make transactions for trade, respectively.

The complaints peaked at around 10:33 AM with about 2,595 reports, with a gradual decline till 10:56 AM. The cause of the outage remains unknown.

The outage caused significant frustration for Zerodha users who depend on the platform for daily trading.

Many users took to social media platforms to express their concerns, with some of them highlighting the repeated outages on the broking platform. 

One user said in a post on X that they were so fed up with repeated outages on Zerodha that they have switched to another stock trading platform.

Responding to the post, Zerodha acknowledged the technical glitch and said that the issue was resolved in a short time.

Several other users also complained about the Zerodha app being completely frozen.

Outages on Zerodha’s broking platform have become quite frequent in recent times. Earlier this month, on June 3, Zerodha suffered another technical glitch.

Between 2021 and 2023, the bootstrapped startup faced as many as 15 technical glitches during trading, leading to customer complaints.

Last year, the BSE’s Grievance Redressal Committee (GRC), in an order, asked Zerodha to compensate a trader for losses due to a technical outage. The order said that Zerodha failed to take corrective action despite being alerted by the exchange. However, Zerodha called parts of the order a “blatant mistake”.

Zerodha, which competes with the likes of Groww and Angel One, saw its net profit rise 37% year-on-year to INR 2,908.9 Cr in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23). Operating revenue also grew 37% to INR 6,832.8 Cr during the year.

The post Zerodha Suffers Another Outage, Users Take To Social Media To Complain appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Pune-based electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer EKA Mobility has received a second tranche of investment of INR 200 Cr from Japanese trading and investment company Mitsui and Co. Ltd as part of a INR 850 Cr deal signed last year.

EKA will use the fresh capital to scale up its manufacturing operations, expand its product portfolio, and meet its capex and working capital needs, the startup said in a statement. 

A chunk of the fresh proceeds will also be earmarked for market expansion and supply chain optimisation.

Founded in 2022 by Dr. Sudhir Mehta, EKA Mobility is an automotive and technology startup that manufactures ebuses and electric small commercial vehicles (eSVCs). It claims that its sustainable solutions are structured using 100% recyclable materials, thereby reducing the carbon footprint. 

In December last year, EKA entered into a partnership with Mitsui and Dutch technology and manufacturing company VDL Groep for making joint investments of $100 Mn (about INR 850 Cr) in phases, equity, and technology cooperation to create a leading global OEM in India.

Earlier this year, Mitsui executed the maiden tranche of investment in EKA, which the latter used to set up a research and development centre for commercial EVs, new product development and boost exports.

Commenting on the second tranche of investment, Mehta said, “The continued investment support will enable us to accelerate our growth trajectory, bring innovative EV solutions to market faster, and further our mission to create a sustainable and green transportation ecosystem.”

EKA is among the 20 applicants approved under the government’s production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for the automobile and auto component industry.

The Centre introduced the policy in 2021 with a total outlay of INR 25,938 Cr.

EKA claims to have an order book of 1,000+ electric buses and 5,000+ electric light commercial vehicles. Amid growing demand for EKA buses in New Delhi and Greater Mumbai, the company expects a surge in electric bus orders in the coming days.

As per an Inc42 report, India’s EV market is expected to reach a size of $110.74 Bn by 2029. Ola Electric, Ather Energy, Altigreen Propulsion Labs, BluSmart, and Exponent Energy are among the notable homegrown startups in the space.

The post EKA Mobility Gets Second Tranche Of INR 200 Cr From Japan’s Mitsui appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance, which was banned by the Indian government in January for non-compliance with anti-money laundering laws, will have to cough up INR 18.82 Cr (around $2.25 Mn) in fine to resume operations in the country.

As per a notification issued by the Finance Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the finance ministry on Wednesday (June 19), Binance failed to comply with multiple provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).

“After considering the written and oral submissions of Binance, the Director, FIU-IND, based on the material available on record, found that the charges against Binance were substantiated,” the notification said.

“Furthermore, specific directions have also been issued to Binance to ensure diligent compliance with the obligations outlined in Chapter IV of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) of 2002, in conjunction with the PMLA Maintenance of Record Rules (PMLA Rules) of 2005 for prevention of money laundering activities and combating the financing of terrorism (AMLCFT),” it added. 

The development comes days after Binance discontinued the cash payment option for peer to peer (P2P) trades in India.

It was earlier reported that the FIU had cleared applications of Binance and Kucoin to operate as virtual asset service providers in India.

While Kucoin has paid fines to the tune of INR 35.5 Lakh for past non-compliances, Binance was reportedly planning a comeback to India after paying a $2 Mn penalty.

It is pertinent to note that Binance was among the nine offshore crypto exchanges that received show cause notices in December last year from the FIU for illegally operating in the country and running afoul of India’s anti-money laundering laws. These offshore crypto exchanges were not registered with the FIU as virtual asset service providers. 

As a result, the government blocked access to the websites of these exchanges and their apps were delisted from Google and Apple’s app stores.

In March 2023, the Indian government brought crypto businesses under the provisions of the PMLA, mandating them to report suspicious transactions and conduct customer due diligence among others.

As per the existing rules, offshore crypto exchanges are required to obtain a licence from the FIU to operate as virtual asset service providers to trade in India.

The post FIU Slaps INR 18.82 Cr Fine On Binance For Violating Anti-Money Laundering Law appeared first on Inc42 Media.