Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday launched the foreign currency settlement system in GIFT IFSC, which will facilitate seamless transactions on real-time basis, enhance liquidity management, and ensure compliance.
The reduction in goods & services tax (GST) on individual life and health insurance premiums has been called a "landmark step" for making insurance affordable and inclusive. In a panel discussion at the Business Standard BFSI Insight Summit 2025, Anup Bagchi, managing director (MD) & chief executive officer (CEO) of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance; Mahesh Balasubramanian, MD & CEO of Kotak Life Insurance; Tarun Chugh, MD & CEO of Bajaj Life Insurance; and Ratnakar Patnaik, MD of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), listed what else the industry needs to reach more people.
As the year draws to a close, Rediff's Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya takes a look at the hits and misses, the highs and lows, the newsmakers and the dealbreakers in alphabetical order.
Fraudsters lure individuals with false promises of recovering bonuses or maturity proceeds from lapsed policies.
The directions follow a report by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, which has seen a new pattern of transnational cyber-enabled financial fraud and investment scam, impersonating as stockbrokers and company executives.
Regularly monitor your account for any suspicious activity. Keep your devices updated with the latest security patches to prevent vulnerabilities. Ensure the physical wallet you use is stored securely to avoid loss or theft.
Targets should avoid panicking and hang up. 'Disconnecting stops the scammers from building psychological pressure.'
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday asked fintech firms to focus on risk management at a time when criminals are using AI to mimic voices, clone identities and create lifelike videos to manipulate people.
Here's what you must know about the new rule, its implications, and whether it affects taxpayers' rights and privacy.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted searches at seven locations across India in connection with a Rs 350 crore crypto ponzi scam. The accused, operating seven modules in different cities, allegedly lured investors with promises of high returns on cryptocurrency investments. The CBI seized digital virtual assets totaling USD 38,414 in cryptocurrency wallets, cash amounting to Rs 34.2 lakh, and digital evidence, including mobile phones, laptops, tablets, hard disks, and memory cards. The agency registered the case under the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology Act.
Indian startups raised a total of $1.65 billion (about Rs 14,418 crore) in funding at a median valuation of $83.2 million in February 2025, according to data from Traxcn. This brings the total funding in FY25 (April-February) to $25.4 billion, spread across 2,200 rounds, the data showed.
India's e-commerce market alone is projected to reach $200 billion by 2026, making it a prime industry for ambitious entrepreneurs, explains rediffGURU Harsh Bharwani.
Activist short-seller Nathan Anderson, known for his high-profile campaigns against the likes of Adani Group, said he is closing his firm, Hindenburg Research, not because of any threat -- legal or otherwise -- and that he stands by all its reports.
Will allowing business correspondents to hawk insurance products help in reviving 5-lakh strong field agents as a viable channel?
India's internet economy is estimated to reach $1 trillion by 2030, primarily due to e-commerce, which is expected to be worth $325 billion and rank third globally, according to industry experts. Last year marked a crucial turning point for India's e-commerce sector, with notable changes in consumer trends, technology, and regulations. InGovern Research Services, a leading corporate governance advisory firm, hosted a virtual roundtable to deliberate on the notable developments in India's e-commerce sector in 2023, with a particular focus on the essential role of customer trust in fueling its ongoing expansion.
'With free software on the Internet and apps, creating a deepfake video can take 3 to 5 minutes. Anyone can make these videos.'
Gullible bank customers are getting fooled by callers who scare or lure them.
Post your financial planning queries for rediffGURU and financial planning expert, Colonel Sanjeev Govila.
Advisors and agents known to you personally can also sell wrong policies.
The Central Bureau of Investigation conducted searches in Delhi and the national capital region (NCR) and busted a fake tech-support call centre that allegedly defrauded US citizens online.
Do not share your passwords or personal information with anyone.
'The focus needs to shift towards the ability to collect payments, particularly in tier-3 to tier-4 areas where acceptance is still lacking.'
Before participating in such a scheme, do a detailed background check of the company's credentials, especially if the promised returns are unrealistic.
Google said safety, affordability and expanded use cases for the next wave of users will be the pillars to get the next 700 million users online.
IIIT-D team builds algorithm that will help identify synthetic images.
With Bharatpe's co-founder Ashneer Grover launching an offensive against the firm's investors after facing a probe over alleged fraud, abrasive behaviour and corporate governance issues, the company on Friday said questioning the integrity of board members and misrepresentation of facts is painful. "The (company) board in all its actions has followed due process in the best interest of the company. We would urge that the confidentiality and integrity of the governance review and board meetings is maintained by all," BharatPe said in a statement. The statement followed Grover, who was sent on a three-month leave following allegations of using abusive language against Kotak Mahindra Bank staff and for fraudulent practices, reportedly saying he was "arm-twisted" by the company's investors into going on leave and that he had lost confidence in CEO Sameer Suhail.
'If you want it to grow well and serve the true needs of the economy, it needs a lot of freedom and flexibility, which comes in terms of the reform objective set by the regulator.'
Around 41 per cent of these companies saw such instances, compared to the global average of 29 per cent. India's number is higher than other countries such as the United States (26 per cent), the United Kingdom (32 per cent) and Japan (27 per cent). It is also worse than other emerging markets. China had 39 per cent of firms affected by data theft. It was 19 per cent and 16 per cent for Brazil and Russia, respectively.
By toxic, the reference is to material that whips up hatred, is discriminatory in nature and has explicit sexual and pornographic content.
The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) new rules for credit and debit cards came into effect from October 1. These include tokenisation, one-time password (OTP) for activation after 30 days, written permission for enhancement of credit limit, and greater clarity on interest calculation.
Delhi brokers under SEBI's glare for drawing investors through ads promising unrealistic returns.
Google on Wednesday launched its global 'Be Internet Awesome' programme for children in India in partnership with Indian comic book publisher Amar Chitra Katha to interweave critical internet safety lessons across eight Indian languages. The tech giant has also launched an enhanced Google Safety Centre in eight Indic languages as part of its efforts to step up safety of users on the internet. Google has significantly increased its resources dedicated to India's Trust Safety teams, including product policy analysts, security specialists, and user trust experts that support over 10 vernacular Indian languages, enabling its central teams to benefit from the local nuance and inputs.
The Congress also alleged that Facebook was acting as an ally of the ruling BJP and pushing its agenda.
The size of the Indian financial services market could touch around $340 billion in the next few years.
There are 7 key rules one can follow to ensure that the chances of such fraud are almost reduced to a negligible level when shopping online, says Anil Rego
The new provisions include greater emphasis on digital signatures, new security practices and procedures for e-governance and other technology applications.
Communicate your every step towards the betterment of their future. If the initial hand-holding will be done right, they will understand and respect your decision of helping them, says Naval Goel.
Major shareholder Kinnevik, a Swedish investment firm, devalued Quikr by 45%, referring to the exaggerated revenue resulting from fraudulent transactions that rocked the company. Quikr is now valued at about $577 million.
In Chanda's defence, one can always say, why would the Videocon Group take care of her husband as a quid pro quo to get a loan? After all, the group has taken money from the entire banking industry and ICICI Bank's share in the pie is not even 10 per cent. So, if it had a quid pro quo with Chanda to get the money, it must have had similar arrangements with other banks, too. If this is not the case, one must accept that it had got money from all banks, including ICICI, without any under-the-table conditions, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The recent default on deposit payments by a couple of Yash Birla Group companies has brought to surface difficulties an investor has to face in recovering his money.
