India Financial News

National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) on Sunday cautioned its 500,000-plus restaurant members on what it termed «dangers» of deep discounting on dining-in, monopolising of payment gateways and data control by aggregators such as Swiggy and Zomato. «Deep discounting has caused significant challenges in food delivery; NRAI warns that similar tactics are being employed to capture the dine-in market,» the NRAI said in a detailed advisory, a copy of which was seen by ET. The development could escalate multiple long-standing disputes between India's ₹5.69 lakh crore restaurant sector and food delivery aggregators, which have been clocking healthy growth year-on-year on the back of consumer convenience and last-mile discoverability. Matters of dispute between the two, including allegations by the NRAI of deep discounting, data masking and uneven commissions by the aggregator platforms on deliveries, are currently being examined by the Competition Commission of India (CCI). For table bookings made by customers on aggregator platforms, most restaurants need to pay 4-8% commissions to the latter, which are higher than the 1-1.5% charged by third-party payment gateways, according to the advisory. According to the NRAI, aggregator payment gateways push aggressive discounts and cashbacks to acquire customers, which, it alleged, are at the expense of the restaurants. Third-party gateways include Paytm and BharatPe.

Rashmi Saluja, the executive chairperson of Religare Enterprises, earned ₹68.86 crore in gross remuneration in FY24, according to the company's annual report released on Saturday. This makes her the third-highest-paid professional to head a company in the BFSI (banking, financial services, and insurance) sector in FY24 and the seventh-highest overall in India, surpassing the gross remuneration of Infosys CEO Salil Parekh, L&T's SN Subrahmanyan and Satish Pai of Hindalco. In the BFSI sector, Abhay Bhutada, the former managing director of Poonawalla Fincorp took home ₹241 crore in FY24 while Rajeev Jain of Bajaj Finance earned ₹101 crore.

cash reserve ratio (CRR) should ensure the lenders have sufficient liquidity to meet financing demand until the end of FY25. Bankers said slower credit growth has narrowed the gap between credit and deposits. Additionally, the ₹1.16-lakh-crore liquidity infusion through a lower CRR threshold will prevent deposit rates from climbing. Bankers said that deposit rates are now near their cyclical peak, and special deposit mobilisation schemes may not be revised at the end of this fiscal year.

IPL) is on a remarkable growth streak, with the top 10 franchises seeing their combined revenue more than double to ₹6,797 crore in FY24 from ₹3,082 crore in the previous year, according to financial data from Tofler. Experts attributed the surge to the league's soaring commercial appeal, powered by smart media partnerships and lucrative sponsorship deals. The primary catalyst for growth was the record ₹48,390 crore media rights deal signed in 2022 between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Disney Star and Viacom18, who have since combined to form JioStar.

ET. The executive, who was in India last week, mentioned that Bitget has been actively engaging with regulators over the past few months to obtain the necessary approvals for its local operations. In a conversation with ET’s Vinod Mahanta, Zade discusses Bitget’s plans for India, the impact of the Trump presidency on cryptocurrencies, the ongoing bull run, and the evolving role of crypto in a post-AI world. Edited excerpts: Q) Do you think that crypto has a future in countries like India where regulators are not in favour of digital currencies? As a company, we firmly believe that having regulations is far better than having none at all. Recently, I’ve had the opportunity to engage with some regulators in India, as compliance is a key priority for us. Binance has recently secured registration to operate in India and we are looking forward to getting ours from authorities.

revenue and profits due to demand concerns, a handful of companies across sectors reported net profits for the first half of FY25 that exceeded their respective profits for the entire previous fiscal year helped by various factors such as growing revenue, lower input costs, inventory benefit, lower tax outgo, and improved operating cash flows. There were eight such companies among the BSE 200 index components including Bharti Airtel, Zomato, Vedanta, Dixon Technologies (India), PB Fintech, Godrej Properties, Voltas, and Adani Wilmer arranged in the descending order of their current market capitalisations. Among these companies, food delivery provider Zomato, electronics manufacturer Dixon, online insurance solutions provider PB Fintech, Realty developer Godrej Properties, and air conditioning major Voltas reported robust revenue growth year-on-year in the six months to September 2024. For Dixon, revenue rose sharply by 120.5% to Rs8,214.7 crore while net profit jumped by 197.3% to Rs523.5 crore, surpassing the FY24 net profit of Rs367.8 crore.

cash still continues to have loyal users. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data on currency in circulation shows that it has been a roller coaster ride for cash demand this year. It rose sharply during elections and festivals and fell at the same pace subsequently. An ET analysis shows that cash demand went up by Rs 87,000 crore from the date the Lok Sabha elections were announced in mid-March until the last phase of the election in the first week of June. Then, they fell by Rs 84,000 crore until end September.

Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team of the Indian Air Force enthralled the people with their manoeuvres over the Hussain Sagar Lake here on Sunday. The team performed an air show as part of the celebrations of "Praja Palana — Praja Vijayotsavalu", the Telangana CMO said in a post on social media 'X'. The amazing performance of the team comprising nine aircraft entertained the people of the city, it said. Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, along with some of his cabinet colleagues, dignitaries, and general public, watched the stunning manoeuvres of Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team.

Norway on Sunday said that it plans to ratify the India-EFTA free trade agreement next year, the commerce and industry ministry said. India and the four-nation EFTA (European Free Trade Association) bloc inked the agreement, officially dubbed as Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA), on March 10 this year. However, it needs ratification from the four countries for its implementation. The agreement came up for discussions during the India-Norway Business Forum which was held in Mumbai. May-Elin Stener, Ambassador of Norway to India, termed TEPA a landmark in bilateral relations and highlighted its potential to further enhance trade and investment between the two nations.

cold wave starting December 9. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has confirmed that temperatures will drop across the region, with Delhi’s minimum temperature expected to fall to around 3°C by December 10, down from its current 7°C. According to IMD scientist Naresh Kumar, temperatures in Delhi-NCR will start to decrease after December 9. "Western disturbance persists over central Pakistan and its surrounding areas… Light to moderate rain is expected in the Himalayas today and tomorrow. Light rain is expected in Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi," Kumar told ANI.

Bridge and Roof Company (India) Limited, a central PSU, in connection with a bribery case after Rs 10 lakh was seized from a luxury car in which he was travelling in Bhubaneswar, officials said Sunday. Besides Chanchal Mukherjee, Group General Manager (GGM) of Bridge and Roof Company, two private persons — Santosh Moharana, Director of Penta A Studio Private Limited and middleman Debadutta Mohapatra — were also arrested for allegedly bribing Mukherjee, they said. The central probe agency had conducted a trap operation after registering a case against four persons including the three arrested accused. According to the CBI, the accused were allegedly indulging in corrupt and illegal activities in the matter of awarding work orders of the PSU and clearing bills in lieu of undue advantage in the form of bribe.

Hyderabad by the Delhi police on Saturday for forcing several youngsters from India to commit cyber crimes through fake call centres on the promise of getting them jobs abroad after a 2,500-km chase. The accused, Kamran Haider alias Zaidi, carried a reward of Rs 2 lakh on his information by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Zaida, along with his associates, trafficked vulnerable young Indian men to the Golden Triangle Region in Southeast Asia, where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet, and force them to work in Chinese companies. Then, their passports would be taken away and they would be forced into cyber crimes.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Anant Goenka, vice-chairman of RPG Group, recalls a chance meeting with an HSBC banker during a flight from Delhi to Mumbai some six months ago, which sparked the conglomerate's interest in acquiring Michelin's off-highway tyres and tracks business. In the next 4-6 months, Ceat faced a brief process as it had to navigate competing interests from Indian and Chinese tyre manufacturers that were also pursuing Camso.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Mumbai: Nepal traditionally celebrates Kukur Tihar, a Diwali festival to worship dogs (and lately Biralo, or cats) as loyal and loving friends. Japan has an entire island popular with tourists, where cats outnumber its human residents.

Indian Embassy in Damascus remains operational and is in constant communication with Indian nationals in Syria, sources confirmed. As the violence in Syria escalates, the embassy continues to provide support to the 90 Indian nationals in the country, ensuring their safety amidst the conflict.

India registered a commanding 35-22 win over Singapore at the Asian Women's Handball Championship in Delhi on Sunday, opening up the opportunity for their best-ever finish in the tournament. India, who have never finished above sixth, will face China on Tuesday in the 5th/6th place playoff match. Charged by the backing of their fans, India opened the placement match against Singapore with high energy, leading 9-6 midway through the first half, courtesy Menika and Bhawana Sharma's consistent scoring. At the other end, captain Diksha Kumari and goalkeeper Nina Shil, who made key saves including a penalty, kept Singapore at bay.

Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday said he has no objection to any senior leader of the INDIA bloc, including TMC chief Mamata Banerjee, leading the coalition, but stressed that the decision must be reached through consensus. Yadav, who is the leader of the opposition in Bihar assembly, told reporters at the city airport, «INDIA bloc hasn't thought on this matter and there has to be a discussion involving all stakeholders.» «We have no issue with Mamata Banerjee leading the bloc, but keeping in mind there are so many senior politicians in the the anti-BJP coalition, there's a need to sit together and take a collective decision on choosing a leader,» he said.

Anand Mahindra, the third-generation scion of the Mahindra clan recently shared a video on X talking about what a Sunday meal looks like in his “typical Punjabi” home. The businessman’s tweet has amassed more than 86,000 views on the micro-blogging site with many finding the clip amusing. The video begins with the video of a family dressed in white “veshti” to depict the south-Indian traditional wear. The man sings in Punjabi about the famous South- Indian dishes- dosa, idli and vada. The visuals of the song also depict a plate filled with these delicacies, while the man continues to sing about the accompaniments- sambhar and coconut chutney. Anand Mahindra shared this video with the caption, “Sunday is Dosa Day at our home. We’re typical Punjabis.”

U19 Men's Asia Cup title here on Sunday. Opting to field, India, the most successful team in the tournament's history with eight titles, produced a discipline bowling performance to dismiss Bangladesh for 198 in 49.1 overs. The pace duo of Yudhajit Guha (2/29) and Chetan Sharma (2/48) and spinner Hardik Raj (2/41) picked two wickets each. However, the Indian batters crumbled in front of the potent Bangladesh bowling attack as they folded for 139 runs in 35.2 overs.

Vivek Oberoi recently shared a fascinating story about an encounter he had during his year-long stint in southern India, where he assisted in the relief efforts following the 2004 tsunami. Struggling with personal and professional challenges at the time, Vivek revealed that his mother encouraged him to focus on helping others as a way to heal. In a candid conversation on Dr. Jai Madaan’s YouTube channel, Vivek reflected on his spiritual experiences during this period. He recalled visiting a famous temple in the region while staying among the survivors of the disaster. Feeling mentally burdened, he was advised to visit the temple, which led to an unforgettable meeting with an elderly man. He revealed that the man was dressed simply in a dhoti with a white beard and spoke to Vivek in “highly polished English”, despite his humble appearance.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: A surprisingly warm November led to a slow start to winter apparel sales, but a steady dip in temperature recently has boosted demand, bringing relief to retailers. Unpredictable weather patterns continue to pose challenges for inventory management, as retailers in North India now face shorter, but more intense winter seasons.