Startups in India need low-cost debt for working capital, which is impossible to get.
'If you align your ambition with India's rise, the peak of your careers will unfold alongside the peak of India's power.'
Giving major relief to budding entrepreneurs, the government on Thursday allowed startups to avail tax concession only if total investment including funding from angel investors does not exceed Rs 10 crore.
Venture capital (VC) investments in Indian startups plunged over 38 per cent in 2022 as economic uncertainty and market volatility affected fundraising and investment activities, GlobalData said on Tuesday. In a statement, GlobalData said an analysis of its financial deals database reveals that "a total of 1,726 VC funding deals worth $20.9 billion were announced in India in 2022 compared to 1,715 deals worth $33.8 billion in 2021." "The ongoing economic uncertainty and market volatility continue to affect the fundraising and investment activities in India and subsequently VC investment in the country startups suffered a massive year-on-year 38.2 per cent decline in value terms during 2022," the data and analytics company said.
Think again. Not filing could cost you. Here's who must file, who should, and why it matters. What's more, the deadline to file your ITR has been extended till September 15, 2025
The government is considering initiating a probe by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) against Gensol Engineering and its promoters, according to sources familiar with the matter. "It is under consideration at this stage. A final decision will be taken soon," a government official said.
'You need the drishti, the experience. I am beginning to see things differently.'
There have been more instances of a management team buying out the owners of a company after the pandemic. There are eight such transactions, called management buyouts (MBOs), in the five years ending 2024, according to data from tracker LSEG shared with Business Standard.
Citing evolving needs and aspirations of the citizens, he said that the civil service must adapt to contemporary challenges to remain relevant.
The Indian government has announced new rules for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) receiving foreign contributions under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA). These rules include requiring NGOs to obtain a "Not a Newspaper" certificate from the Registrar of Newspapers for India if they engage in publication-related activities, as well as submitting financial statements and audit reports for the past three years. Additionally, NGOs must submit a commitment letter from the donor, a project report detailing proposed expenses, and a declaration that administrative expenses will not exceed 20% of the foreign contribution.
Noting that the number of unicorns in India has reached the 100-mark this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that even in the phase of the Covid pandemic, Indian startups have been creating wealth and value with entrepreneurs emerging from smaller cities and towns as well. In his monthly 'Mann ki Baat' radio broadcast, the prime minister said that on the fifth of this month the number of unicorns in India reached the 100-mark. "The total valuation of these unicorns is more than USD 330 billion, that is, more than 25 lakh crore rupees. "Certainly, this is a matter of pride for every Indian," he said.
In a double-dose bid to boost growth and employment prospects, the Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved a Rs 2.07 trillion outlay for a research development and innovation (RDI) Scheme to fund private sector innovations, and an employment-linked incentive (ELI) to create over 35 million new jobs over the next two years.
The youth today want to go where they feel happy, learn something, feel challenged, rewarded and intellectually stimulated. And then, they meet 'the manager', a relic of the first industrial revolution. A fascinating excerpt from Aseem Dhru's book, Mondays @ 7.
Developers in India now have expanded access to Google's powerful AI models with the 2 million token context window in Gemini 1.5 Pro and Gemma 2, the next generation of open models.
The domestic stock market this week would monitor the geopolitical developments after India and Pakistan reached an understanding to stop military actions, analysts said. Moreover, macroeconomic data announcements, Q4 earnings, trading activity of foreign investors and global market trends are also likely to influence sentiments, traders said.
Ajit Balakrishnan offers a recipe for creating 100,000 plus angel investors in India.
'We will start reaching out to researchers, academics, and experts on AI from top universities and companies from across the world.'
If you are a budding developer and interested in Web3, chances are that you will be headed to one of India's largest-ever meetings of Web3 developers, being held by Polygon, a Web3 platform. The company's ongoing "Web3: Made in India Tour" is expected to see close to 4,000 developers coming together at the inaugural Polygon Connect event in Bengaluru on December 1. The event highlights the growing dominance of Web3 developers from India, as well as the sector's rising interest to investors, who continue to invest in startups despite a funds crunch.
As the Jaggi brothers - Anmol Singh Jaggi and Puneet Singh Jaggi - find themselves at the heart of the financial mismanagement in the Gensol-BluSmart saga, attention on the third BluSmart co-founder, Punit K Goyal, has taken a notably different turn.
Given the strong interest among rich Indians to settle abroad, the Dubai-based company has opened a full-fledged office in New Delhi and plans to follow it up soon with an office in Mumbai and then a few in central and southern parts of the country.
Given the strong interest among rich Indians to settle abroad, the Dubai-based company has opened a full-fledged office in New Delhi and plans to follow it up soon with an office in Mumbai and then a few in central and southern parts of the country.
The income tax department has notified rules for valuation of equity and compulsorily convertible preferable shares issued by startups to resident and non-resident investors. As per the changes in Rule 11UA of I-T rules, which comes into effect from September 25, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) provides that the valuation of compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS) can also be based on the fair market value of unquoted equity shares. The amended rules also retain the five new valuation methods proposed in the draft rules for consideration received from the non-residents viz., (i) Comparable Company Multiple Method, (ii) Probability Weighted Expected Return Method, (iii) Option Pricing Method, (iv) Milestone Analysis Method, and (v) Replacement Cost Method.
'Many were caught in a burnout race, chasing unsustainable growth without innovating.'
The Lucknow-born Shukla, former NASA astronaut Mission Commander Peggy Whitson, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are part of the Axiom-4 mission that marks the return to space for the three nations.
Google is building voice and text search for over 100 Indian languages and will spend $75 million to support women-led startups in the country, said its CEO Sundar Pichai at the start of his visit to India - a nation that he saw as a big export economy. India, he said, will be a big export economy and it needs to create a balance between safeguarding citizens and enabling companies to innovate with its framework. Pichai first met Telecom and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and spoke at a Google for India 2022 event before calling on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Some of them include Spider G, NeuroTags, Genrobotic Innovations, AI Aeronautics, Synersense, Dealshare and NanoHealth. 'Highway to a Hundred Unicorns,' the Microsoft for startups initiative, works closely with local governments to strengthen the startup ecosystem in each state.
The January-March quarter (Q4) results for 2024-25 (FY25) from the country's largest passenger vehicle (PV) maker, Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), were a mixed bag, with revenues broadly in line but operating profit missing Street expectations. Given cost pressures, margins at the operating level were the lowest in the past seven quarters.
India's largest IT services company TCS believes that generative artificial intelligence (AI) is not just another tech cycle but a "civilisational shift" which will positively benefit every industry.
'As the global economy undergoes significant transformations in 2025, India's ability to navigate the complexities of trade wars, financial realignments, and emerging blocs will be pivotal,' explain Harsh V Pant and Soumya Bhowmik.
Anticipating US action on tariffs, India seems to have made the first move by revamping its tariff structure by reducing the slabs to eight rates, points out Mukesh Butani.
The Slovak Republic's President, Peter Pellegrini, has expressed interest in adopting a tree-planting initiative similar to India's "Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam," launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The inspiration came during a meeting with Indian President Droupadi Murmu, who was on a two-day state visit to Slovakia. During a tree-planting ceremony in Nitra, Murmu highlighted Modi's initiative to plant trees in the name of mothers. Pellegrini was impressed and suggested that Slovakia could consider a similar program. The initiative, launched on World Environment Day last year, encourages people to plant a tree in their mother's name as a symbolic gesture of love and respect.
'The AAIB will collect every single retrievable piece of the aircraft and transport it to a secure location -- usually a large hangar capable of housing a Boeing 787.' 'The entire aircraft will be laid out, each part marked and tagged, and practically rebuilt like a jigsaw puzzle.'
The four-day CIFF was packed with so many other new projects, like Radhika Apte's first directorial effort Koyta, with Vikramaditya Motwane as the producer, Venkatesh Maha's Ko Ko Ko, Jeo Baby's Punishment and Shonali Bose's Black Mountain Monpa.
Amid the funding winter, 128 Indian startups have raised over $995 million (around Rs 8,000 crore) venture capital funding in August, GlobalData said on Thursday. The funds raised in August are 9.7 per cent more than that in the previous month, the data and analytics company said in a statement. Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, said: "Although the total VC funding amount still remains below $1 billion akin to July, August managed to reverse the decline in fundraising, despite a 2.3 per cent fall in deal volume."
India's flexible (flex) office segment, having breached pre-pandemic levels, is thriving as corporates, startups, multinational corporations, and global capability centres (GCCs) expand in India, seeking low-capital yet Grade A plug-and-play facilities. In the first quarter (Q1) of 2025, the flex office segment continued to grow, with flex space leasing rising by 22 per cent to 2.2 million square feet (msf), according to Colliers.
'Today, we have 2 million active drivers earning through our platform every month.'
From connectivity woes to infrastructure advancements and the startup boom, there is a gulf between claims and reality in India's economic landscape, points out Devangshu Datta.
Several multinational medical device makers are focusing on deepening their presence in India by expanding their local manufacturing footprint and research capabilities, a move that can catapult India into a strategic hub for the medical technology (medtech) industry. Among those increasing their reach in the country are Siemens Healthineers and Philips, signalling a broader shift from India being only a sales destination to becoming a global production and innovation base.
The government is expected to outline a policy framework for artificial intelligence (AI) at the annual India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2024, beginning Tuesday, officials said. Apart from industry participation, the four-day event will feature booths from over 15 ministries showcasing how AI is being integrated into their departments.
'The race is now on for Indian IT firms to develop their AI prowess and focus on a software-first approach to services as the people element becomes more complicated with Trump's expected new regulations.'
