Aneesh Phadnis &Amp;Amp; Subrata Panda

Stories by Aneesh Phadnis &Amp;Amp; Subrata Panda

Big Tech in financial system poses concentration risk: Shaktikanta Das

Big Tech in financial system poses concentration risk: Shaktikanta Das

Rediff.com   21 Sep 2022

The increasing involvement of Big Tech in the financial system could give rise to concentration risk and there are potential spillovers, which call for closer attention, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said on Tuesday. "...enormous amounts of consumer data is being generated and leveraged upon by a few entities (the so-called Big Tech) by virtue of their huge customer base. "Such developments raise concerns on concentration risk and potential spillovers as their level of engagement with the financial system strengthens in the years to come," Das said at the Global Fintech Fest 2022.

Air India's 5-year plan - 30% domestic market share

Air India's 5-year plan - 30% domestic market share

Rediff.com   16 Sep 2022

The Tata Group-owned Air India has readied a five-year transformation plan, which is expected to take its domestic market share to 30 per cent, up from 8.4 per cent logged in June. IndiGo leads with a market share of 58.8 per cent. The transformation plan--Vihaan.AI-unveiled on Thursday revolves around tripling the domestic market share with investments in new aircraft, technology and improvements in customer service.

How Banks Are Tackling Cyber Frauds

How Banks Are Tackling Cyber Frauds

Rediff.com   14 Sep 2022

To educate customers on the modus operandi of financial fraudsters and share inputs on safe banking habits, banks are now coming up with awareness campaigns aimed at preventing customers from falling into the trap of fraudsters.

Battle for skies: Tatas kick-start Air India fleet expansion via leasing

Battle for skies: Tatas kick-start Air India fleet expansion via leasing

Rediff.com   13 Sep 2022

In its first move to significantly expand the fleet after the Tatas took over, Air India has leased 25 Airbus narrow-body aircraft and five Boeing wide-body planes. These will enter service starting December, the company said on Monday. A wide-body plane has a bigger fuel tank, allowing it to travel longer distances such as India-US routes.

Jet Airways faces turbulence ahead of launch as 3 senior executives quit

Jet Airways faces turbulence ahead of launch as 3 senior executives quit

Rediff.com   9 Sep 2022

Jet Airways has been hit by three top-level resignations ahead of its relaunch. The three senior executives who have resigned include Captains Niraj Chandan (head of flight safety), Vishesh Oberoi (head of operations) and Sorab Variava (head of training). These posts are critical and generally senior pilots are nominated for the roles.

IndiGo's new CEO Pieter Elbers takes over, eyes 'new frontiers'

IndiGo's new CEO Pieter Elbers takes over, eyes 'new frontiers'

Rediff.com   7 Sep 2022

The coming years will be among the most exciting of your professional lives, IndiGo's new chief executive officer (CEO) Pieter Elbers wrote to the airline's staff after taking charge on Tuesday. Elbers, who spent three decades at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, replaces Ronojoy Dutta at the top post. "Earlier, IndiGo communication summarised it all in just three words: 'Towards new heights' and-let me add here: 'across new frontiers'. "With that vision in mind, you should feel assured that the coming years will be among the most exciting of your professional lives," Elbers said.

Credit card spends touch all-time high of Rs 1.16 trillion in July

Credit card spends touch all-time high of Rs 1.16 trillion in July

Rediff.com   31 Aug 2022

Credit card spends touched an all-time high of Rs 1.16 trillion in July, registering a growth of 6.5 per cent on a month-on-month basis and 54 per cent year-on-year, latest data put out by the Reserve Bank of India revealed. Spends have topped the Rs 1 trillion level for five consecutive months now. Industry participants are expecting further tailwinds in credit card spends with the onset of the festive season, where spends typically remain at an elevated level.

3 Pilots Tested Positive For Psychotropic Substances

3 Pilots Tested Positive For Psychotropic Substances

Rediff.com   27 Aug 2022

commercial airlines and air navigation service providers have to carry out random drug tests on at least 10 per cent of their flight crew and air traffic controllers every year.

1,900 private security guards to be deployed at airports

1,900 private security guards to be deployed at airports

Rediff.com   26 Aug 2022

ersonnel in a revamp that aims to provide cost-effective, reliable, and professionally competent security service at airports. Aneesh Phadnis reports.

Banks rush to woo depositors ahead of festive season

Banks rush to woo depositors ahead of festive season

Rediff.com   25 Aug 2022

Commemorating 75 years of India's independence, SBI has launched a 75-day Utsav Deposit Scheme, offering 6.10 per cent for fixed deposits. Senior citizens will get an additional 0.50 per cent and the offer is on until October 30, SBI said.

After 15 months, RBI allows AmEx to acquire new credit card customers

After 15 months, RBI allows AmEx to acquire new credit card customers

Rediff.com   25 Aug 2022

The Reserve Bank of India has on Wednesday lifted the ban on new customer acquisition by American Express which was imposed with effect from May 2021 due to non-compliance with local data storage norms. "In view of the satisfactory compliance demonstrated by American Express Banking Corp. with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) circular dated April 6, 2018, on Storage of Payment System Data, the restrictions imposed, vide order dated April 23, 2021, on onboarding of new domestic customers have been lifted with immediate effect," RBI said. Similar bans were imposed on Diners Club International and Mastercard previously.

Indians remitted $6 bn in Q1FY23 under LRS scheme

Indians remitted $6 bn in Q1FY23 under LRS scheme

Rediff.com   22 Aug 2022

Outward remittances under the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) liberalised remittance scheme (LRS) made a strong comeback in the first quarter of FY23 as Indians increased spending on international travel, maintenance of close relatives, and gifts. The latest data for Q1FY23 released by the RBI shows that remittance by Indians under the scheme jumped 64.75 per cent to over $6.04 billion from $3.67 billion in Q1FY22. The amount remitted in Q1FY23 is even higher than that in Q4FY22, where outward remittance under LRS was to the tune of $5.8 billion. In April, about $2.02 billion was remitted, followed by $2.03 billion in May, and $1.98 billion in June, data released by RBI in the August bulletin shows.

Big-bang privatisation of PSUs can be harmful, says RBI article

Big-bang privatisation of PSUs can be harmful, says RBI article

Rediff.com   19 Aug 2022

A gradual approach to privatise public sector banks (PSBs) is more ideal than taking a big-bang approach, a study by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) staff has concluded. It has backed the government's idea to privatise two PSBs initially. Such a gradual approach would ensure that large-scale privatisation does not create a void in fulfilling important social objectives of financial inclusion and monetary transmission, the study has argued.

Telcos pay Rs 17,873 crore as first instalment of 5G spectrum dues

Telcos pay Rs 17,873 crore as first instalment of 5G spectrum dues

Rediff.com   18 Aug 2022

The Department of Telecommunications (DOT) on Wednesday received over Rs 17,873 crore from companies towards 5G spectrum dues. Nearly half the amount (Rs 8312.4 crore) was paid by Bharti Airtel, which made advance payments for four years to free up cash for future investments. Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea paid Rs 7,864 crore and Rs 1,680 crore, respectively.

The Akasa Air experience as it takes to the skies

The Akasa Air experience as it takes to the skies

Rediff.com   8 Aug 2022

Sundays are generally quiet days for air travel, but this Sunday was a tad different. There was quite an excitement at Gate 28 of Mumbai airport's Terminal 1 as Akasa Air, India's newest airline, prepared to take to the skies on Day 1. With a new fuel-efficient Boeing 737 Max aircraft and soft cushioned seats equipped with USB ports, Akasa Air hopes to bring freshness to the flying experience.

Bullish on 5G, Xiaomi to launch sub-Rs 15K phones

Bullish on 5G, Xiaomi to launch sub-Rs 15K phones

Rediff.com   5 Aug 2022

Xiaomi will strengthen its product portfolio and launch 5G devices in the sub-Rs 15,000 segment as it looks to increase its market share in the segment. Xiaomi led the shipments in overall smartphone category in 2021 with a 24 per cent share, according to Counterpoint Research. However, in the 5G segment it is ranked fourth behind One Plus, Samsung, and Vivo, with a 13 per cent share.

June credit card spends remain above Rs 1 trn

June credit card spends remain above Rs 1 trn

Rediff.com   3 Aug 2022

Credit card spends in June, although down marginally month-on-month (MoM), remained above the Rs 1-trillion mark for the fourth consecutive month. In June, credit card spends topped Rs 1.09 trillion, down 4.34 per cent MoM, revealed the data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). However, on a year-on-year basis, spends were up 73 per cent. In May, credit card spends hit an all-time high, reaching Rs 1.14 trillion.

July records 6 billion UPI transactions, highest ever

July records 6 billion UPI transactions, highest ever

Rediff.com   2 Aug 2022

Unified Payments Interface (UPI) clocked over 6 billion transactions in July: the highest ever by India's flagship digital payments platform since its inception in 2016. UPI reported 6.28 billion transactions amounting to Rs 10.62 trillion, according to data released by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which operates the platform. Month-on-month, the volume of transactions was up 7.16 per cent and value increased 4.76 per cent.

Card data storage: RBI relaxes rules for checkout on guest transactions

Card data storage: RBI relaxes rules for checkout on guest transactions

Rediff.com   29 Jul 2022

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has relaxed card-on-file data storage norms pertaining to guest transactions checkout, whereby now, apart from the card issuer and the card network, the merchant or its payment aggregator involved in the settlement of the transactions can save the data for a maximum of T+4 days or till the settlement date, whichever is earlier. And, acquiring banks have been permitted to store the card-on-file data until January 2023 for handing other post-transactions activities. The industry reached out to the RBI on the issue and sought a solution.

Study Abroad: How To Deal With Rising Costs

Study Abroad: How To Deal With Rising Costs

Rediff.com   29 Jul 2022

The rupee depreciation will work in favour of students who are currently studying in the US and plan to secure a job that pays in dollars.