Surajeet Das Gupta And Abhijit Lele

Stories by Surajeet Das Gupta And Abhijit Lele

Private philanthropy outstripped corporate largesse by 42% in FY20

Private philanthropy outstripped corporate largesse by 42% in FY20

Rediff.com   17 Mar 2021

Individuals flew the flag for philanthropy in FY20, escalating their contribution significantly in comparison with company and foreign fund donations, according to the Dasra/Bain & Co India Philanthropy Report of 2021. Funding by individual philanthropists went up by 42 per cent from Rs 21,000 crore in FY19 to Rs 30,000 crore in FY20.

India Inc goes slow on rupee bonds, eyes international market

India Inc goes slow on rupee bonds, eyes international market

Rediff.com   15 Mar 2021

Indian corporate are fast tapping the international bonds market to raise funds for their operational expenses even as they reduce their presence in the rupee bond market. As bonds are costlier for companies and investors are more sceptical than the banks, chief financial officers say they are looking at other avenues for raising funds in the coming months as dollar bond rates are lower in the range of 100 to 250 basis points. "For corporate with reasonable credit quality, the Indian bond market has become less of an option from a cost point of view. "In addition, conditions imposed in the Indian bond market by investors post Franklin episode have also become very onerous," said Prabal Banerjee, president-finance of Bajaj group. "Hence very few corporate are looking at the local bond market for resource mobilisation, since both, bank loans and the overseas bond markets are much more attractive," he said.

Atmanirbhar and PLI: Why Modi's ambitious manufacturing targets are unachievable

Atmanirbhar and PLI: Why Modi's ambitious manufacturing targets are unachievable

Rediff.com   12 Mar 2021

Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met over 40 CEOs across broad swathes of industry, ranging from makers of mobile devices, auto components, food products to telecom networking equipment and pharmaceuticals. The agenda: To discuss how to make India an integral part of the global supply chain. The focus of the discussion would be the much touted yet not so well understood production-linked incentive scheme (PLI), the centrepiece of the government's drive to massively boost the manufacturing sector. To do so, the government has created a war chest of over Rs 197,000 crore to be paid out as incentives to over 14 industries in five years. There are three objectives to the scheme, two explicitly stated, one implied.

Out of PCA, IDBI Bank can now expand business

Out of PCA, IDBI Bank can now expand business

Rediff.com   11 Mar 2021

The bank will now be in a position to resume normal lending activity, including corporate lending, with tightened risk management framework.

Over 10 Indian start-ups may mop up at least $10 billion in IPO rush

Over 10 Indian start-ups may mop up at least $10 billion in IPO rush

Rediff.com   22 Feb 2021

Over 10 Indian start-ups with total valuations of $84 billion (some are planning fresh fund-raising) are bracing to launch initial public offerings (IPOs) in the next 36 months. While the size of their IPOs is under discussion, estimates are that they would together raise a minimum of over $8-10 billion during the initial listing.

Has India lost out in the global 5G race?

Has India lost out in the global 5G race?

Rediff.com   17 Feb 2021

Several factors have held India back. One is DoT policy somersaults and lack of clarity on whether to or not to ban Chinese gear makers.

Singapore-based DBS Bank plans to trim India branches in 2-3 years

Singapore-based DBS Bank plans to trim India branches in 2-3 years

Rediff.com   15 Feb 2021

The combined deposits of its Indian operations stood at SGD 9 billion and net advances were at SGD 5.6 billion at the end of December 2020.

Airtel and Jio go head to head in battle for 5G

Airtel and Jio go head to head in battle for 5G

Rediff.com   13 Feb 2021

The Big Two telecom companies have accelerated their moves towards this next-gen technology, though they have chosen very different routes to getting there.

Cash was king in 2020 even as digital transactions increased

Cash was king in 2020 even as digital transactions increased

Rediff.com   20 Jan 2021

The hoarding of cash accentuated from the very start of 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic started taking hold the world over, and fear of the pandemic prodded people to remain liquid for emergency use.

How Sunil Vachani plans to take Dixon Tech global

How Sunil Vachani plans to take Dixon Tech global

Rediff.com   14 Jan 2021

Today, Vachani's public-listed company, Dixon Technologies, has gone beyond manufacturing just television sets. Armed with private equity funding from Motilal Oswal eight years ago, it has transformed itself into a Rs 4,400 crore electronic manufacturing services major, which now straddles lighting products, home appliances, feature phones, LED bulbs, amongst others. A two-part series looks at how two home-grown manufacturers are leveraging the govt's production-linked incentive scheme.

'Economy well placed to capitalise on recovery in 2021'

'Economy well placed to capitalise on recovery in 2021'

Rediff.com   6 Jan 2021

'The financial sector's performance in the first two quarters was a revelation.' 'It clearly showed the clean-up had been done in the past one-and-a-half years and that capital brought in was significantly stronger.'

From loan moratorium to digitisation, 2020 saw major shifts in banking

From loan moratorium to digitisation, 2020 saw major shifts in banking

Rediff.com   30 Dec 2020

While lenders create a hype around the services offered on digital platforms, customers think otherwise, given that frustration due to the quality of service has only increased, over the years.

Pros and cons of Indian banks' cross-selling initiatives

Pros and cons of Indian banks' cross-selling initiatives

Rediff.com   28 Dec 2020

In a bid to gain a bigger share of the customer's wallet, banks are ramping up their cross-selling initiatives.

Why it makes sense to take personal loans from PSBs

Why it makes sense to take personal loans from PSBs

Rediff.com   26 Dec 2020

The interest rate offered by PSBs like SBI, BoB and BoI hover around 8.9 per cent-10.50 per cent. For private banks, the range is between 10.49 per cent and 12 per cent.

Is Reliance Jio's 5G plan realistic?

Is Reliance Jio's 5G plan realistic?

Rediff.com   23 Dec 2020

Surajeet Das Gupta explains why Mukesh Ambani's target is by no means impossible.

ATM-isation of banking is here

ATM-isation of banking is here

Rediff.com   22 Dec 2020

But what do banks gain by opening their apps for all? The answer -- rival bank's customers under their fold.

New rules will make Ola, Uber's life tougher

New rules will make Ola, Uber's life tougher

Rediff.com   22 Dec 2020

Just a few weeks ago, the Centre has come out with the long-awaited Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, which have drawn a dismayed response from the companies concerned.

Wistron: 'We made mistakes as we expanded'

Wistron: 'We made mistakes as we expanded'

Rediff.com   22 Dec 2020

iPhone SE 2020 is one of the popular phones like Apple 11, which is the biggest seller in the domestic market.

'Demand for home loans is rising steadily'

'Demand for home loans is rising steadily'

Rediff.com   19 Dec 2020

'We tightened our risk frameworks once the Covid crisis started.' 'We are slowly lightening this as we see economic activity pick up, salaries getting restored, and people getting back into jobs.'

Sunil Mittal's $2 bn gamble on space

Sunil Mittal's $2 bn gamble on space

Rediff.com   18 Dec 2020

Bharti Global is planning to put up more satellites and has set a stiff deadline to launch commercial Internet services by October in the UK, Alaska, northern Russia and northern Europe.