Innholdsfortegnelse for 4 February 2024 i Business Today

Over the past 10 years, the Narendra Modi government has been able to push through some key reforms in the financial sector. Chief among them are the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana on financial inclusion and, of course, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). As the government nears the end of its second term, one of the biggest moves it is currently engaged in—believed to be a pet project of Prime Minister Modi—is to bring global finance into India in a major way in the form of the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, or GIFT City, the international financial services centre (IFSC) near Ahmedabad. GIFT City is now in the process of getting a major fillip as the government eases regulations, creates infrastructure and ensures ease of…

THE MONEY GAME ▸ Tax incentives and easier regulations are attracting businesses to set up operations in GIFT City ▸ In recent months, LIC and Paytm have also announced plans to set up offices in the city SOURCE IFSCA BULLETIN JULY-SEPTEMBER 2023 BANKING • IFSC banking units 23 • Assets $46.48 billion • Derivative outstanding $142.91 billion NOTE DATA AS ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2023 CAPITAL MARKETS IFSC STOCK EXCHANGES TURNOVER • No. of contracts 5,913,791 • Traded value $194.89 billion NOTE DATA AS ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2023 CAPITAL MARKET INTERMEDIARIES* SUSTAINABLE FINANCE LISTING OF DEBT SECURITIES AT IFSC EXCHANGES (AS ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2023) • Cumulative debt listings $52.7 billion • Cumulative ESG labelled debt listing $10.18 billion INSURANCE WRITTEN/TRANSACTED PREMIUM BY IFSC INSURANCE OFFICES AND INTERMEDIARY OFFICES BETWEEN JULY AND SEPTEMBER…

Mark Mobius is an investor who has a huge following in many countries across the globe. Not surprising, since he has travelled to more than 110 countries and invested in over 5,000 companies with a cumulative asset size being in excess of $40 billion. The 87-year-old, who in November announced that he would be stepping back from his role as Founding Partner at Mobius Capital Partners in the coming months, is considered an authority on emerging markets where he has been investing for well over 30 years. He is quite bullish on India—a country he recently visited for a month—and believes that the benchmark BSE Sensex could touch 100,000 in the next five years, though the journey could be bumpy. In an interaction with Business Today’s Ashish Rukhaiyar, Mobius talks about his investment…

1,580+ TOTAL NUMBER OF GCCs IN INDIA AS OF JUNE 2023, PER THE NASSCOM-ZINNOV GCC REPORT. IT IS AN EXPANDING SEGMENT AS THERE ARE 10,000 GLOBAL ENTERPRISES 50% OF GCCs GLOBALLY ARE IN INDIA, MAKING IT THE WORLD’S GCC CAPITAL 1.6 million+ PROFESSIONALS EMPLOYED BY THE GCCs TILL JUNE 2023. IT IS ABOUT A QUARTER OF THE DIRECT JOBS GENERATED BY THE INDIAN IT SECTOR 25% AVERAGE SHARE OF THE INDIA CENTRE HEADCOUNT WITHIN THE GLOBAL COMPANY, AS PER EY’S GCC PULSE SURVEY 2023…

Savera Engineering founded by Mr Pritish Chatterjee and MrAtul Save (Cabinet Minister Housing and OBC, Government of Maharashtra), started in 1992 with manufacturing of parts for Videocon and Bajaj Auto. They then expanded their units in Ranjangaon, Pune for LG, Godrej, IFB and Haier. The next big step was venturing into the exports market, manufacturing parts for refrigerator, dishwasher and washing machines for the global mega corporations - General Electric (GE) and Electrolux USA. It has now expanded to grow into a big enterprise with 4 more units and 5 subunits. Pritish and Save then changed gears to approach the Swedish Giant and Furniture Chain IKEA for manufacturing ironing boards for them. Earning their trust, they attracted the attention of other companies who started noticing the quality of work. They…

Founded in January 2014 by Vinet Kuumar, ThoughtSol is emerging as a prominent, youthful, and dynamic IT services and solutions company that focuses on empowering businesses with digital transformation. They offer a complete range of services including IT strategy, deployment and management while specializing in two core aspects of digital transformation, i.e., Cloud computing and Cybersecurity. By providing innovative solutions to various businesses, they enable businesses to maximize productivity and efficiency. As the CEO of ThoughtSol, Vinet Kuumar leads the executive team while building relationships with clients and partners. While he ensures that the firm meets its financial goals, his primary role consists of developing and implementing the company’s mission, vision, and overall strategy. He has taken upon himself the task of creating a diverse culture of innovation and excellence.…

A MONTH AFTER Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the US in June 2023—when semiconductor major Micron announced plans to invest in India—he inaugurated the second edition of the annual Semicon India summit in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Since it came close on the heels of Micron’s announcement of its intention to set up an ATMP (assembly, testing, marking, and packaging) unit, there were hopes that more would follow. There was just one; AMD’s commitment to invest $400 million to set up its largest design centre in Bengaluru. But India has yet to receive an application from a leading chip player for setting up a semiconductor fabrication unit. Media reports suggest that Tower Semiconductor has filed a fresh application, but the government is yet to confirm this. Of course, India’s dream…

Teamed up with Foxconn to apply for chip fab. JV split in July 2023, and Vedanta is scouting for tech partner Subsidiary Tarq Semiconductors has submitted revised proposals for ATMP facility and a compound semiconductor unit Plans to set up a subsidiary with an investment of ₹830 crore. It is looking to enter with fabless chip design It intends to make a beginning with an ATMP unit and set up a foundry in the long run Rumoured to have been interested in entering the chip race along with HCL via ISMC last year. ISMC proposal was put on hold It is planning a $791-million foray through CG Power and Industrial Solutions; has filed an application…

THE EXTREME COLD affecting several parts of India has caused a twofold jump in demand for room heaters across sales channels. Demand for high-capacity geysers (15 litres or more) has also surged considerably. The room heater market in India—valued at $94.6 million (around ₹784 crore) in 2023—is pegged to grow at a CAGR of 6.76 per cent till 2029, per management consulting firm TechSci Research. It says the water heater market—valued at $285.85 million (around ₹2,366 crore) in 2023—would grow at a CAGR of 7.15 per cent through 2029. “Room heaters (fan and halogen models) and storage water geysers are the most popular categories during peak winter,” says Jagjeet Harode, VP of Electronics, Appliances and Private Brands at Flipkart. Customers prefer value for money when buying room heaters as they are…

Seasoned bureaucrat K. RAJARAMAN, who was earlier Telecom Secretary, took charge as Chairperson of International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA)—tasked with regulating and developing international financial services centres (IFSCs) in India—in July 2023. In an interview with Business Today, Rajaraman says the IFSCA is working with the central and state governments to attract businesses to GIFT City and develop the talent pool required by these firms. Edited excerpts: Many companies plan to move to GIFT City from other similar jurisdictions. Are businesses becoming more confident? I will give a specific example of the shipping industry. Indians own a lot of ships but they are all owned outside the country in Dubai, Singapore, Panama, Liberia, and Greece. We believe that if we are able to mimic or produce the same kind of…

ON APRIL 1, 2019, when Mohit Malhotra got the corner office at Dabur India’s headquarters in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, the company’s top line had been flat for three years, and the new CEO would soon have to sign off on lacklustre numbers for the year that just closed. Malhotra, a Dabur insider brought in from the international business in 2018 to head the India business and then given the helm, got growth going again. Sales rose by 10 per cent in his first year, and the Covid-19 pandemic that hit an unsuspecting world in 2020 powered the growth of anything that claimed to boost immunity. Dabur grew in FY21 and FY22. But Dabur’s revenue growth has been inconsistent over the past decade. And Malhotra and Dabur’s promoters, the Burmans, are banking…

FIFTEEN YEARS AGO, a wave of change swept through the corridors of CEAT’s artsy head office in Mumbai’s Worli, transforming the brand’s identity. The iconic rhino mascot—a faithful companion for nearly 50 years—and the company’s tagline “Born Tough” were retired. In came a simplistic logo and a new tagline, “Making Mobility Safer And Smarter Everyday”. This marked a poignant departure from tradition, as CEAT—under the stewardship of RPG Enterprises Chairman Harsh Goenka—rolled into a new era. For the company’s new MD and CEO Arnab Banerjee, a veteran of more than two decades, the new identity underscores the company’s ability to keep its ears to the street. “During one of our focus group discussions, it came up that rhinos are going to be extinct soon. It was important to listen to what…

Born in a family of Engineers in Gorakhpur, it was as if Dr. Sanjay Agarwals’s role in building India’s infrastructure was preordained. After a childhood spent fascinating over mega structures like bridges, tunnels, railways, he went on gather a Civil Engineering degree from the Manipal Institute of Technology. Joining IRCON in 1986, he has been in the thick of things, being apart of Mega infrastructure Projects of diversified nature inside and outside the subcontinent. He was in the team that built Asia’s largest Rail Coach Factory in Kapurthala. That apart, the Dadri Power Plant Rail connectivity, Road cum rail bridges in Tatanagar too saw his involvement. With IRCON, he moved to Indonesia to development and build urban elevated roads & flyovers in Jakarta. In 1996, Sanjay joined IJM Corporation and…

A first-generation entrepreneur, Mr. Jijy Mathew started his career as a Junior Engineer. Moving to the Middle East in 1998 and working with the Food Processing and Packaging Machinery major, Ishida Europe Ltd. as a Technical Support Engineer is what got him into the industry. In 2005, he moved to T.N.A Australia Pvt Ltd, one of the best snack processing and packaging machinery manufacturers. He travelled extensively to UK, Japan, Australia, Turkey, Iran, and the Middle East gaining considerable exposure from leading companies like PepsiCo, Star Foods, Dina Foods, etc. through commissioning projects in the Snacks Food Processing Sector. With 14 years of experience under his belt in the food processing industry and a vision in his mind, Mr. Mathew returned to India to start Maxvita Foods (India) Pvt. Ltd.,…

2021 DECEMBER GOVERNMENT APPROVES A SEMICONDUCTOR AND DISPLAY FAB SCHEME WORTH ₹76,000 CRORE 2022 FEBRUARY FIRST ROUND OF APPLICATIONS CLOSE; CENTRE RECEIVES TWO DISPLAY AND THREE SILICON FAB APPLICATIONS, INCLUDING THE VEDANTA-FOXCONN JV OCTOBER MEITY REVISES SCHEME, OFFERS 50 PER CENT INCENTIVES TO ALL SILICON, COMPOUND, AND OTHER FABS NOVEMBER–DECEMBER TATA SONS CHAIRMAN N. CHANDRASEKARAN CONFIRMS COMPANY’S PLANS TO VENTURE INTO THE BUSINESS; HIRES VETERAN RANDHIR THAKUR TO LEAD TATA ELECTRONICS 2023 JUNE MICRON ASSEMBLY, TESTING, MARKING AND PACKAGING PLANT WORTH $2.75 BILLION GETS GOVERNMENT NOD JULY VEDANTA AND FOXCONN PART WAYS; BOTH LOOK TO ENTER INDEPENDENTLY…

THE WORLD OF investing has always subscribed to the age-old adage of ‘higher the risks, greater the rewards’. This mantra suggests that those willing to take on substantial risks stand a chance of earning sizeable returns. In the increasingly adventurous world of investments, fixed deposits have long been a favourite among conservative investors due to their stability and low risk. But, with inflation inching higher, coupled with the need to generate significant returns, alternative investments with higher returns have started gaining traction. The new buzzwords in alternative investment products are asset leasing and invoice discounting, which offer annual returns of up to 20 per cent. But it’s important to remember the caveat such instruments carry: the higher risks involved. Not only does this put the spotlight on the shift in…

Games24x7 is one of India’s biggest online gaming companies What was the problem you were grappling with? In 2020, multiple states banned online games of skill. Within a few months, we lost over 50 per cent of our business. This was also a time when markets were flush with money and venture capitalists (VCs) were throwing cash at anyone who could spell “start-up”. This led to one of India’s hottest job markets, but we couldn’t compete. It had never been harder for us to acquire and retain talent. Whom did you approach for advice and why? When I have complex issues like this, I consult my board of directors, my team, and advisors, but I rely most on my founding partner, Bhavin Pandya, because you want advice from someone with…

THE GOVERNMENT IS keen on concluding negotiations for at least three free trade agreements (FTAs) in the next two months to ensure they materialise into conclusive deals before the General Elections later this year. Official sources say India’s commerce ministry is trying to finalise the trade deals with Oman, the UK as well as the four-nation bloc of European countries that includes Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, by February. With two rounds of talks with Oman completed, the India-Oman Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) may be the first one to be signed. The India-UAE trade pact, signed in February 2022, is expected to have given a boost to the negotiations with Oman, while also serving as a model, given that both nations are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Fresh talks…

AT CES 2024, the most-awaited consumer technology show of the year, artificial intelligence (AI) was everywhere. From major tech conglomerates to numerous innovative start-ups, all those who congregated at the Las Vegas event had AI on their lips. Take South Korean conglomerate Samsung, for instance. The technology giant unveiled its ‘AI for All’ vision, which entails using AI to make the connected device experience safer, more inclusive, and more energy-efficient. From a TV whose AI-enabled processor automatically upscales low-resolution content to provide users with up to 8K quality viewing experience to rolling AI robot Ballie, to an intelligent refrigerator that uses an internal camera to recognise up to 33 different food items and suggests recipes using those ingredients, AI was at work everywhere. Moving out of homes, German auto…

1 GIFT City is conceptualised on the lines of the international financial services centres in Singapore and Dubai 2 It was started as an initiative of the Gujarat government, and now it’s being helmed by the Government of India 3 The project has gained momentum in recent years, when a unified regulator was set up 4 With more policy and regulatory clarity on operations, businesses now seem more interested in setting up outposts in GIFT City 5 However, some challenges remain and GIFT City may take a few more years to become fully operational…

▸ Mohit Burman-led Dabur has launched a new growth strategy with its power brands to put the company on a sustained growth path ▸ Dabur’s top-line growth since Mohit Malhotra took over as CEO has improved to 8 per cent CAGR and boosted its sales to ₹11,530 crore in FY23 ▸ The acquisition of Badshah Masala grew its F&B revenues to ₹1,832 crore in FY23. It is expected to post strong volume-led growth in the high twenties in the December quarter ▸ In spite of volatility in multiple geographies and currency fluctuations, its international business, which contributes 25 per cent to the company’s top line, continues to grow in double digits ▸ Defying the recent slowdown in the rural market, Dabur’s management is now eyeing yearly revenues of ₹20,000 crore…

DESPITE TRADITIONAL IT SERVICES OUTSOURCING FIRMS SCALING BACK ON HIRING, GCCs ARE ESTIMATED TO HAVE ADDED A NET 364,000 NEW JOBS IN 2023 STARTED ORIGINALLY AS COST-EFFICIENT BACK-OFFICES FOR MNCs, GCCs IN INDIA ARE TRANSITIONING INTO IN-HOUSE TECH, INNOVATION AND RESEARCH CENTRES AS TRADITIONAL NON-TECH FIRMS REALISE THE VALUE OF IN-HOUSE TECH SKILLS, INDIAN GCCs ARE CONTRIBUTING TO PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND INNOVATION THE INDIAN GCC MARKET HAS GROWN AT 11.4 PER CENT CAGR BETWEEN FY15 AND FY23 TO $46 BILLION, PER NASSCOM-ZINNOV GCC REPORT TODAY, THE SECTOR EMPLOYS 1.6 MILLION PROFESSIONALS, INCLUDING SEVERAL IN KEY GLOBAL LEADERSHIP POSITIONS THE AVAILABILITY OF LARGE-SCALE ENGLISH-SPEAKING TECH TALENT, WHICH SPURRED THE IT BOOM IN INDIA, IS ALSO DRIVING THE GCC RUSH…

Farid Khan is setting up new benchmarks in quality, product development and services for the fenestration market at par with international standards. He has established a strong presence for "Koemmerling" brand in India. In 2017, he ventured into aluminium window and door system and launched "AluPure" brand, which has become a well-known name in the fenestration industry. Aiming to establish India as an export hub for the world, his company has invested hugely in infrastructure, technical advancement, skill development and R&D. Talking about his approach, he shared his views on varied subjects. LEADERSHIP STYLE I believe that things can be done in a better way than before, to achieve organizational goals and it’s a continuous process. I also believe that people should be independent to think big, dream big and…

STATES LIKE GUJARAT, UTTAR PRADESH AND ODISHA HAVE ANNOUNCED SEMICONDUCTOR POLICIES $2.75 BILLION-WORTH MICRON ATMP FACILITY ANNOUNCED AND APPROVED APPLIED MATERIALS TO BUILD A COLLABORATIVE ENGINEERING CENTRE IN BENGALURU WITH AN INVESTMENT OF $400 MILLION AMD TO INVEST AROUND $400 MILLION OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS TO CREATE ITS LARGEST DESIGN CENTRE IN BENGALURU LAM RESEARCH TO TRAIN 60,000 INDIAN ENGINEERS IN NANOTECHNOLOGIES OVER 10 YEARS BTECH IN VLSI DESIGN BY AICTE: MORE THAN 300 INSTITUTES TO OFFER UNDERGRADUATE AND POSTGRADUATE COURSES FUTURE DESIGN: SEVEN FABLESS START-UPS APPROVED…

ARE YOU WARY of the ‘use-it-or-lose-it’ nature of pure term insurance plans? Intrigued by an insurance plan that promises to refund every premium you’ve ever paid? Enter the zero-cost term insurance plan. Since it was launched in 2022, many companies have brought out their offerings to tap into customer demand. Companies like Max Life Insurance, HDFC Life Insurance, Bajaj Allianz Life, Canara HSBC Life Insurance, and ICICI Prudential Life provide these ‘zero-cost’ term plans, allowing policyholders to close the policy and receive a full premium refund or continue until maturity without any cashback benefits. For the uninitiated, there are three fundamental forms of term insurance plans: The regular term plan, where the policyholder receives coverage for a fixed duration; the term plan with return of premium or TROP plan, which…