PremiumListen to this article |
Mint Morning Digest
RIL-Apollo leads in race for Boots pharma chain
A consortium of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and buyout firm Apollo Global Management Inc. has emerged as the strongest contender to acquire Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.’s Boots pharmacies unit in the UK, two people directly aware of the matter said.
The consortium has valued the assets in the range of $7-8 billion, the people said, without specifying the exact bid. Walgreens, based in a suburb of Chicago, put its Boots business on the block in December, seeking a valuation of $8.8 billion. (Read more)
Don’t overlook the risks of fractional investing in real estate
Fractional ownership is a way for small investors to own physical real estate through an alternate investment route. Online platforms like Strata, hBits, PropertyShare, bhive, etc., allow individuals to invest ₹25 lakh and above in pre-leased Grade A commercial properties and earn an average 10% rental yield. (Read more)
Centre to clarify on TDS on benefits, VDAs
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is set to issue guidance notes on two key tax proposals introduced in the union budget for FY23 that expanded the tax deducted at source (TDS) provisions so that businesses have a better understanding of the provisions before they kick in. (Read more)
Telcos and tech cos at loggerheads on 5G private networks
Indian telecom operators and the Broadband India Forum (BIF) are at loggerheads over the issue of private entities being allowed to set up captive networks with direct allotment of 5G spectrum.
The Forum, comprising members such as Tata Consultancy Services, Amazon, and Meta, among others, has said that private networks are revenue generators for the government and giving out 5G spectrum to set up private networks does not pose a security threat as the networks are closed and disconnected from public telecom networks. (Read more)
OTTplay becomes aggregator with new premium platform
OTTplay, the recommendation and content discovery platform for streaming services, launched last year by HT Labs, has now turned into streaming service featuring content from a range of OTT platforms. (Read more)