Forex violations bring ₹10,600-cr ED notice on Flipkart
For allegedly flouting foreign exchange rules, the Enforcement Directorate has slapped ₹10,600 crore notice on Flipkart and nine other entities/individuals linked to it, reports Business Standard.
Why it’s important: This is the biggest ever FEMA show-cause notice issued.
The authorities found some discrepancies in Flipkart’s structuring operations.
Flipkart and its holding firms were found to have breached various forex provisions.
Especially one dealing with “transfer and issue of security to the person outside India”.
BigBasket co-founder Choudhari is moving out
BigBasket co-founder Abhinay Choudhari has moved out of the company, reports Business Standard.
What his plans are: He wants to “solve another equally painful chore for many Indian households” -- online laundry segment.
Choudhari decided to move out when the Tata group bought a majority stake in the firm.
He would be setting up the first laundry centre in Bengaluru with the latest machines.
This would be the biggest laundry facility with a capacity to process 45,000 garments per day in India.
Choudhari is setting up the facility on affordability and a quick turnaround time of 24 hours.
India’s total laundry market is estimated at around of $12 billion in 2019.
“After nine years, the start-up itch has been growing within me, and I want to build one more new business from scratch,” Choudhari wrote to BigBasket employees in his parting email.
Vodafone Plc offers Vi stake to lenders, BSNL for free
Vodafone Plc is ready to part its 45 per cent stake in Vodafone Idea (Vi) for free to banks or financial institutions or to BSNL, provided they take over the wireless telephony company Business Standard reports.
Why it’s important: If BSNL takes over the company, government dues will be a book entry for the merged entity.
The company has ₹25,000-crore dues from lenders.
It also has huge government dues like adjusted gross revenue payments.
The total liabilities of Vi, including bank loans, is ₹ 1.8 trillion.
SBI Watching Telecom Stress: Chairman
The State Bank of India is mindful of the stress in the telecom sector and is taking proactive steps to insulate its balance sheet, reports The Economic Times quoting SBI Chairman Dinesh Khara.
Why it’s important: The move is significant after the developments especially in the Vodafone Idea.
Khara mentioned that Vi was not a stressed account on its books yet as SBI’s exposure to the company is over ₹11,000 crore.
He also said the talks of bankruptcy is too early to take a call.
Mumbai tops in housing market with 33% jump in launches
India’s housing market is recovering fast led by Mumbai and Bengaluru, reports Business Standard.
Why it’s important: Covid-induced lockdowns and other restrictions have hit the residential real estate market in April and May.
However, the new data shows that property registration in Mumbai was the highest in July since 2011 at 9,037.
New launches increased by 33 per cent quarter-on-quarter.
In Bengaluru, it zoomed 47 per cent.
Steel majors eye container making in India
The steel makers in the country are ramping up production of containers for global trade as most of them are imported now, The Economic Times reports.
Why it’s important: There is a severe shortage of containers across the world.
There is a positive push from the Centre for vocal for local manufacturing.
China is the world leader in the container making.
Steel majors such as Jindal Steel & Power and ArcelorMittal Nippon have big plans for investing in facilities for specialised steel for container making or manufacturing containers themselves.
Tata Steel said many wagon builders have plans for this segment and are in talks.
House panel for MGNREGS-like job scheme for urban poor
A parliamentary standing committee has proposed the Centre government to make an urban employment scheme on the lines of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), reports Mint.
Why it’s important: The plight of urban poor has not got much attention of the government so far unlike rural counterparts.
This plan will help people recover from massive job and income loss following the coronavirus outbreak.
“The consequential effects on loss of jobs, rising unemployment, indebtedness, nutrition, health and education of unorganized workers and their family members have the potential to cast a long shadow and cause irreparable damage,” the House panel said in its report submitted to Parliament.