Provident Financial News

Studying abroad is a dream for many Indian students and it is undoubtedly an endeavour that requires competent financial planning. Education loans are a great instrument when it comes to giving meritorious students access to finance that will help them achieve their dreams. The education loan landscape is diverse, with a plethora of banks and NBFCs (non-banking financial companies) offering competitive rates and terms.

Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship has been assigned the responsibility of establishing Entrepreneurship Development Centers in all the 104 government Industrial Training Institutes (ITI) and three National Skill Training Institutes (NSTI) of the Northeastern Region by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship under the Flagship Central Sector Scheme of Government of India “Skill Strengthening for Industrial Value Enhancement” (STRIVE). IIE will be implementing the project in all eight states of NER. The project is aimed at creating a pool of 107 trained mentors who shall operate from ITIs and NSTIs of the region and will be acting as the “Change Agents” to drive the entrepreneurial movement amongst the youth of ITIs and NSTIs. The project is targeting 29,500 enrolled students of ITIs and NSTIs from across all 8 states of NER, who will initially undergo ‘Two Days of Entrepreneurship Awareness Program’ (EAP) in the first stage.

Indian restaurant abroad, taken a bite and thought, “Wow, that’s really spicy!” This can just be the sharp contrast, if it’s in a country where the other food we’ve been eating has been bland. But Indian restaurants abroad can be surprisingly spicy, in ways we don’t expect with our home food. This is true of British curry houses, with their curries ranked by hotness, from mildKormas to medium-hot Madras, hotter Vindaloo and painfully hot Phaal (an invented term).

cryptocurrencies, while saying global trends had shown a need to regulate such activities, the bank said in its latest circular. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in February 2021 barred banks and financial institutions from dealing in or facilitating transactions in crypto assets, citing money laundering and terrorism financing risks.

Stock Market Holiday on Christmas: Domestic financial exchanges - Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) will be closed on Monday, December 25, in observance of Christmas. This annual holiday means a one-day pause in trading across all segments, including equity, equity derivatives, and Security Lending and Borrowing (SLB) segments. Trading will resume on BSE the next day at 9 am for the pre-opening session and the normal market will begin at 9.15 am and will end at 3.30 pm like all business days.

Thomas Schneeweis says focusing on past performance is the first and biggest mistake investors make when it comes to asset allocation. According to Schneeweis, investors should be rather focused on risk instead of returns. “Much of the past, though interesting, may have very little relevance to what we do today,” he said.” Who is Thomas Schneeweis? Thomas Schneeweis is the Founding Editor of The Journal of Alternative Investments and is co-founder of the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association. He has more than 40 years’ experience in investment management. He is Partner and Head of Research at Yes Wealth Management which provides financial advisory as well as risk based asset allocation and Quantitative Investment Technologies. He has co-authored several books in the area of asset management including The New Science of Asset Allocation: Risk Management in a Multi-Asset World and PostModern Investment: Facts and Fallacies of Growing Wealth in a Multi-Asset World. Investing in hedge funds Schneeweis offered several investment tips on what to look at when investors are looking to invest in hedge funds.

The crypto market has become part of the global financial landscape, with investors looking to purchase digital assets on different exchanges. However, for investors who value their privacy, buying crypto without completing a form of identity verification process can be challenging, especially with global regulators tightening their oversight of the industry.

Christmas reflects a diverse tapestry of traditions worldwide, where each culture adds its unique and occasionally eccentric customs to the festive celebration. Christmas is observed on December 25th, and serves as a commemoration of the birth of Jesus Christ. While the Bible doesn't specify the exact date of Jesus' birth, early Christians opted for December 25th to coincide with pagan winter solstice celebrations.

financial awareness sessions and by providing access to various financial tools and, in some cases, trustworthy financial advisors. P&G India, NetApp, MG Motor and Dell Technologies are among organisations enhancing their employee wellbeing offerings to include financial wellness and awareness.

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron has branded Iran «a thoroughly malign influence in the region and in the world» in an interview published Sunday in which he also pledged stepped-up deterrence towards Tehran. The former British prime minister's warning echoes accusations by the United States Friday that Iran is involved in attacks on commercial ships by Yemen's Huthi rebels, providing drones, missiles and tactical intelligence.

Bitcoin network activity increase has triggered a significant spike in transaction fees, soaring to as high as $40.00. In the face of market fluctuations, Polkadot is dominated by new proposals. Meanwhile, Borroe Finance ($ROE), one of the new DeFi projects, introduces an AI and NFT-powered funding marketplace grabbing Web3 investors’ attention.

Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy Saturday said the state government will provide Rs 5 lakh accident insurance to gig workers such as those involved in food delivery, and driving cabs and auto-rickshaws. According to an official release, he also assured the gig workers that the government would provide Rs 10 lakh health cover under the Rajiv Arogyasri scheme.

In the ever-evolving cryptocurrency market, Pepe (PEPE) is a notable player, especially as of December 23. Trading at just $0.000001, it has achieved a remarkable 24-hour trading volume of $172.9 million, despite a slight decrease of 0.70% in the last day.

Income Tax Return (ITR) notified by the Central Board of Direct Taxes for assessment year 2024-25. ITR 1, or Sahaj, can be filed by a resident individual having income of up to ₹50 lakh and who receives income from salary, one house property, other sources (interest), and agricultural income of up to ₹5,000. Taxpayers will have to give details of all bank accounts in India operational in the previous financial year. They will also have to provide details of the type of bank account. The updated return forms also have a special section for deduction for the Agniveers, or youngsters serving in the armed forces under the Agnipath scheme, under Section 80CCH. ITR 4, or Sugam, can be filed by individuals, Hindu undivided families (HUFs) and firms other than limited liability partnerships (LLPs) having total income of up to ₹50 lakh and income from business and profession. Last year, the forms were notified in February. Earlier there was a separate column for cryptocurrency.

ICICI Securities, the financial services company of ICICI Bank, has picked up over 188,000 sq ft office space in information technology park Mindspace Juinagar in Navi Mumbai through a long-term lease of over 12 years. The ICICI Bank subsidiary has leased the office space spread across five floors in one of the towers of the IT park from Newfound Properties & Leasing, a subsidiary of real estate developer K Raheja Corp. The financial services company will be paying monthly rentals of Rs 92.15 lakh for the office space. The lease agreement includes a clause to escalate rentals 4% every year, taking its total payout to around Rs 166 crore through the total term of the lease. The deal was registered on December 15 and the lease tenure will commence from January 1, 2024, shows documents accessed through Propstack.

DLF plans to generate sales of Rs 1,400 crore from its latest commercial project in Gurugram and residential project in Panchkula, said Aakash Ohri, joint managing director of DLF Home Developers Ltd. The company is on track to surpass its guidance of launching luxury residential projects worth Rs 12,400 crore in 2023-24, he said, amid the ongoing price increase in the premium property segment. Additionally, the real estate developer's recently unveiled Central 67 project, spanning 8.69 acres and featuring shop-cum-office spaces, is expected to generate revenue of Rs 700 crore. «The project is fully sold out, with substantial interest from end users. The high-street segment is in high demand, and the presence of several residential developments in proximity to the project will attract foot traffic to the complex,» said Ohri. Plot sizes start at 140 square yards and the project provides dedicated space for commercial activities. «Located at the Sohna elevated corridor, this project assures effortless connectivity to major business hubs and cities through the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, ensuring convenience,» said Ohri. The company is expecting another Rs 700 crore from The Valley Orchard, low-rise residences in Panchkula, Haryana.

Bonk and Retik, two rising stars in the decentralized finance (DeFi) arena, are generating significant buzz, with indications pointing towards a high possibility of them replacing the current favorites, Dogecoin (Doge) and Shiba Inu (Shib), by 2024.

Gujarat government's decision to allow liquor in GIFT City and called it a progressive and bold step that will attract major companies and quality workforce to the area. The state government on Friday lifted the ban on liquor in the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City with the aim of providing it with a «global ecosystem.» Jaxay Shah, CMD of Savvy Group, an Ahmedabad-based firm with a construction area of 4 million square feet in GIFT City, said, «It is a historical, progressive and bold step. GIFT City was competing in terms of infrastructure and was at par or even ahead of many international financial cities in the world.

inDrive on Saturday said driver registrations on its platform surged by around fivefold while the number of trips more than four-fold during a month-long special campaign. The company said it conducted a special drive from November 15 to December 15 to onboard new drivers as well as motivate registered drivers to take more trips. The campaign saw new registration of more than 80,000 drivers this month against addition of 18,000 drivers in a similar campaign carried out earlier in June this year, said Avik Karmakar, GTM Manager for South Asia at inDrive.

Uttar Pradesh administration is aiming to increase the revenue from liquor sales. Recently, the excise department has made certain changes to the liquor policy and allowed people to consume beer within 100 sq ft of their vends.

(This story originally appeared in on Dec 21, 2023)