Trai has ordered BFSI firms to move service and transaction calls to the 1600 series from 2026 to reduce spam, financial fraud, and rising digital arrest scams.
'In India's case, an extended earnings slowdown accompanied by rich valuations have dimmed returns since late 2024.'
'Reinvention is not a hugely difficult task. With technology as available today, you can reinvent yourself pretty quickly.'
Four individuals have been arrested for allegedly running a sophisticated cyber fraud operation, duping people with fake discounted air tickets across multiple cities. Police recovered a substantial amount of cash and luxury items from the accused.
Indian equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, ended lower after a spectacular rally, with the Sensex tumbling 931 points, as renewed tensions in West Asia, particularly the risk to the ceasefire deal after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, dampened investor optimism.
Mirroring the traditional hawala system, where money is sent through non-banking channels, this digital version uses the anonymity of unregulated cryptocurrency to erase the financial trail and inject cash into the domestic economy.
Cleaner balance sheets, regulatory support and strong growth prospects helped Indian private banks attract over $6 billion in foreign capital, with more deals expected in 2026.
Investors are moving away from the commercial paper (CP) market towards certificates of deposit (CDs), as primary CD issuances and rates on these short-term instruments rise.
For every 100 rupees, households invested Rs 45.2 in mutual funds and equities in 2024-2025.
The ideal time to invest in sector funds, is during a downturn so that investors can capitalise on a turnaround in 1.5 to 2 years.
'The bigger unknown remains global geopolitics, which is inherently unpredictable, including developments in our neighbourhood.' 'Another concern is the increasing tilt of government finances towards welfare subsidies, especially at the state level.' 'This could constrain capital expenditure, which is critical for long-term growth.'
Gold and silver prices experienced a significant drop in the national capital due to a global selloff driven by inflation concerns, central bank policies, and geopolitical tensions.
Two chartered accountants have been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case linked to a cyber fraud involving Rs 641 crore.
Households should moderate large discretionary expenses for the time being.
'They should prioritise essential spending. They should maintain an emergency fund covering 6 to 12 months of expenses.'
State Bank of India has embarked on a drive to cut the Know Your Customer (KYC) process to a single one across its branches, a top official said on Tuesday.
As the government moves to revamp India's securities legislation, unifying three different laws into the Securities Markets Code (SMC), regulatory experts and market insiders have raised concerns on potential funding challenges for the stock market regulator.
In an event-heavy week ahead, stock markets are expected to track Q3 corporate earnings from several blue-chip firms, including TCS and Infosys, while inflation data and global trends would also dictate investors' sentiment, analysts said.
'The West Asia or the Gulf crisis has shown that what we develop as national infrastructure when things are not as bad as they could be, we forget to plan for adversities.'
Banks are depending more heavily on the market for certificates of deposit (CDs), whose worth climbed to a record Rs 5.75 trillion in the fortnight to January 15, owing to deposit tightness in the system.
Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Wednesday exhorted the fledgling fintech ecosystem to focus on the underserved sections of the society to deepen financial inclusion. Speaking at the annual Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai, Malhotra accepted that serving the "privileged" will be a lucrative business, but urged the smaller companies to focus on the underserved.
The recent policies that have been announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will allow banks to fully use its capital, funding profile to keep business at an equilibrium level, which otherwise was getting skewed towards retail, said K V Kamath, chairman, Jio Financial Services.
Analysts predict a surge in gold and silver prices as investors seek safe-haven assets due to escalating tensions in the Middle East. The impact on domestic prices will depend on the conflict's duration, with geopolitical factors and macroeconomic data also playing a role.
rediffGURU T S Khurana answers readers' personal income tax queries
The banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector has moved back into focus for investors this calendar year, after lagging the broader market for two consecutive years. BFSI stocks have outperformed benchmark indices in 2025 so far, driving a steady rise in the sector's weighting within the Nifty 50 index.
Ask rediffGURU and PF expert Nitin Narkhede your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police's Counter Intelligence Wing (CIK) has dismantled a sophisticated international cyber fraud racket, arresting seven individuals in Srinagar. The operation targeted victims in the USA, UK, and Canada, using advanced techniques to steal funds through deceptive online schemes.
Paytm plans to launch mutual funds, insurance and banking services and s also providing the option to transact offline with a physical debit card
The reduction in the number of loan accounts and the outstanding amount during the last financial year is a cause of concern and stress for microfinance institutions (MFI), Secretary, Department of Financial Services, M Nagaraju said on Thursday, highlighting "inefficiency" in MFIs that leads to higher rates of interest.
Coforge's planned $2.35 billion all-stock acquisition of US-based Encora has divided the Street, with a few brokerages terming it a "strategically positive" but execution-heavy bet while others raising valuation concerns.
The CBI has conducted searches across multiple states in connection with a large-scale online financial fraud involving the overseas fintech platform 'Pyypl'.
The CBI has booked the son of industrialist Anil Ambani, Jai Anmol Anil Ambani, and Reliance Home Finance Ltd. (RHFL) in a case of alleged cheating in Union Bank of India that caused a loss of Rs 228 crore to the public bank, officials said on Tuesday.
Noting that recent uncertainties created by global tariffs have not impacted the Indian economy severely, Anuradha Thakur, secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, said the central government is hopeful that the recent goods and services tax (GST) rationalisation will ignite the much needed animal spirits in the financial sector.
As deposit growth lags credit expansion, Indian banks face shrinking low-cost Casa inflows, rising funding costs, and structural shifts driven by UPI, e-Kuber, and digital savings trends, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
In 2023-2024, 95 scheduled commercial banks received over 10 million complaints from their customers. The process of KYC at many banks has become 'HYC' -- harass your customer, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Kanpur police have uncovered a GST fraud racket where suspects used unsuspecting individuals' documents to create fake firms and route transactions worth nearly Rs 250 crore.
The big question is whether Trump is any longer in command of the situation. For all practical purposes, the war seems set to cascade as the US is preparing for a potential ground operation in Iran and threatens to destroy 'bridges next, then electric power plants', points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Foreign capital will continue to come directly into India, but companies have realised that GIFT City is a more cost-efficient way of channelling funds.'
'The first time India has seen two consecutive blockbuster IPO years.'
This election is different. It is no longer simply about governance or welfare. It is about identity, fear, and who belongs. The BJP has successfully shifted the terms of the debate from what the government has delivered to who the real Bengali is and who is an outsider, points out Ramesh Menon.
Among Sensex firms, Hindustan Unilever dropped the most by 3.20 per cent. UltraTech Cement, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Adani Ports, Titan, HDFC Bank and Axis Bank were also among the laggards. However, Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank, Bharat Electronics and Sun Pharma were among the gainers.
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