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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.New Delhi: India’s automakers have told the government that consumers are unlikely to adopt flex-fuel vehicles unless high-ethanol fuels such as E85 and E100 are priced significantly below petrol, according to two people aware of discussions between the petroleum ministry, oil marketing companies, and auto lobby group Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam).The industry has sought lower retail pricing for high-ethanol fuels along with tax benefits as the government accelerates work on a roadmap for higher ethanol blending amid rising energy security concerns.In Brazil, where most vehicles can run on E85 or E100 fuels, high-ethanol blends are priced lower than the standard E27, according to the country’s national agency of petroleum, natural gas, and biofuels.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.There has been growing awareness about credit cards in India, but the number of users still remains low, with 118.6 million credit cards issued as of end-March, a penetration of only 8.5%. This is because of strict credit appraisal processes that leave a large segment of the population underserved.In such a scenario, customers can opt for a secured or fixed deposit (FD)-backed credit card instead of the ubiquitous unsecured card.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.American courts are not supposed to be venues for performance art. If counter-parties in a lawsuit do not have adverse interests—say, because they answer to the same person—judges balk. So when Donald Trump sued his own administration seeking $10bn in damages, the judge had questions.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: The mutual fund industry may be closing in on a structural fix to a long-running cost problem that weighs on asset manager profitability and makes small investments less viable.The industry is working on creating its own KYC Registration Agency (KRA) through Mutual Fund Utility (MFU), a move that could cut know-your-customer (KYC) expenses by nearly half, according to four people aware of the discussions.If implemented, the shift would directly reduce fixed onboarding costs that AMCs must pay for every new investor, regardless of investment size, these people said.Currently, asset management companies (AMCs) pay around ₹35 to KRA agencies for every new investor onboarded. That cost applies even to very small investments.Take a ₹500 monthly systematic investment plan.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.To grab hold of the glossy dream of overseas education and eventual global employment, Indian parents have willingly liquidated family assets and taken out hefty education loans — all in the hope that earnings in dollars or euros would wipe out the debt.But in 2026, that fundamental equation stands fractured. With the Indian rupee hitting record lows of ₹96 against the US dollar, the financial math of studying abroad demands a hard reset.The equation has changed.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.New Delhi: State-run Oil India Ltd (OIL) plans to raise its exploration and production capital expenditure by over 10% to ₹10,000 crore this fiscal year, chairman and managing director Ranjit Rath said, as the country grapples with an energy shock amid the West Asia war.The Maharatna company, which traces its origin to India’s first commercial crude oil discovery in Digboi (Assam), expects to produce about 4 million tonnes (mt) of crude oil this fiscal, compared with 3.45 mt in FY26. He added that work on the $20-billion Mozambique LNG project has resumed.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Muthoot FinCorp Ltd, one of India's largest gold loan non-banking finance companies (NBFCs), is seeking to raise up to ₹4,000 crore through an initial public offering, even as it attempts to convince investors that it is more than just the business it has spent decades building.Muthoot wants to be read as a diversified, technology-enabled financial services company that can grow through its branch network, app, and a wider product set.That is the tension at the heart of the company’s initial public offering (IPO) pitch. In an interview with Mint, chief executive Shaji Varghese said the company is moving “from a single-product company to a company of a social segment with multiple products".The NBFC, with 3,800 branches, ₹56,185 crore in assets under management (AUM) and over ₹1,640 crore in net profit for FY26, approved the IPO on Saturday, subject to shareholder and regulatory clearances.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: India’s largest banks are stepping up cyber defences, hiring, and insurance coverage as concerns grow that advanced AI systems could make cyberattacks faster and harder to contain, exposing gaps in preparedness and protection.The pressure has risen after a finance ministry meeting with top banking executives on 23 April focused on banks’ preparedness for AI-linked cyber threats. The meeting came weeks after Anthropic unveiled Claude Mythos, a frontier AI model the company said could identify vulnerabilities and conduct cyberattacks at unprecedented speed.Concerns around AI-enabled attacks have grown since September last year, when a cloud storage server exposed personal banking data of nearly 300,000 individuals, including loan account details linked to several large banks and non-banking finance companies.India’s largest private lender, HDFC Bank, told Mint it reviews cyber insurance annually and is now widening coverage as risks evolve.“The bank is continuously strengthening its cyber security posture, including hiring highly-skilled talent across security engineering, developer security operations, red-teaming or simulation of cyber attacks, and AI security,” said Ramesh Lakshminarayanan, group head of information technology and chief information officer at HDFC Bank.At Axis Bank, teams participate in programmes such as adversarial AI and ‘red teaming’ to simulate attacks.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.High up in the mountains or deep in the jungles, your smartphone may still stay connected, thanks to direct-to-device (D2D) satellite technology making its way to India. However, the technology has opened up divisions, as telecom operators, satellite service providers and broadband firms spar over customer control, spectrum, and launch timelines.The department of telecommunications (DoT) has proposed a 'wholesale' model for satellite communications like D2D, which is currently under the telecom regulator's consultation process.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Coming soon to ChatGPT: help with your personal finances based on insights from your actual accounts. OpenAI says subscribers to the Pro version of its artificial-intelligence chatbot will be able to connect their financial accounts to it and get personalized guidance.OpenAI is relying on Plaid, a fintech company, to securely link users’ bank accounts to ChatGPT, according to an OpenAI announcement on Friday.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: India’s alternative investment fund industry is seeking to widen access to a small but fast-growing pool of wealthy investors, arguing that a cumbersome accreditation system and limited incentives are slowing participation even as the sector scales sharply.The industry has made a representation to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) seeking a simpler accreditation system and stronger regulatory benefits for accredited investors, according to two people aware of the development.“AIFs made a representation to Sebi last month to make the accreditation process more friendly for investors,” one of the people said on condition of anonymity. “Accredited investors also need proper incentives to grow this segment.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Telecom operator Vodafone Idea Ltd on Monday laid out an ambitious financial roadmap to generate and secure over ₹1.08 trillion in cash over the next three years, betting on a sharp rise in operating earnings, possible bank debt funding, income tax-related recoveries and promoter support to fund its turnaround.The telecom operator has to pay ₹49,000 crore towards spectrum dues over the next three years, execute a capital expenditure plan of ₹45,000 crore for network expansion and upgrades, and meet interest payments of about ₹5,000-6,000 crore to service bank debt, taking its cumulative outgo to nearly ₹1 trillion.“...we are very confident that with the bank loan for the capex and for the Ebitda addition, we will be able to fulfil all our obligations across the next three years,” Vodafone Idea’s chief financial officer, Tejas Mehta, told analysts during the Q4 earnings call. Ebitda is short for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.As of the end of March, the telecom operator had a cash and bank balance of ₹3,715 crore.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Shares of Tata Steel fell about 4% on Monday despite a robust March quarter performance, as concerns mounted over possible closure of its coke and gas plants (CGPs) in the Netherlands due to emission norm breaches.The stock reaction was driven by regulatory risks at Tata Steel Netherlands (TSN). In April, local agencies issued a letter to TSN expressing their intention to revoke permits for its 40–50-year-old CGPs, citing non-compliance with emission norms.While TSN could procure coke from the market if the units are shut, that would significantly dent profit margins and could render operations commercially unviable.The regulator’s move can impact the financial stability of TSN, “given the significance of the facilities to TSN’s operations,” the company said.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.India’s central bank has quietly become a key pillar of macroeconomic stability. It is not just a monetary authority, but increasingly playing a role as a fiscal shock absorber. This deserves appreciation and caution.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has managed an extraordinarily hard decade.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Telecom operator Vodafone Idea showed early signs of operational improvement in the March quarter, as its subscriber base stabilised and average revenue per user (Arpu) rose.Analysts, however, said the company’s long-term recovery still hinges on securing larger funding to manage spectrum liabilities and improve services.On Saturday, the company’s board approved a ₹4,730 crore fund infusion from promoter Aditya Birla Group entity Suryaja Investments Pte Ltd, through issuance of 4.3 billion equity-convertible warrants at ₹11 per share.The funding is largely seen as a signal to lenders that promoters are backing the company at a time when Vodafone Idea has been struggling to secure much-awaited bank financing, according to analysts.“The warrant issue is a positive signal because it reflects continued promoter commitment and brings fresh capital into Vodafone Idea. But ₹4,730 crore by itself is not large enough to resolve the company’s structural challenges,” said Parag Kar, an independent telecom analyst.The bigger challenge remains spectrum liabilities, future payment obligations, capex needs, and cash-flow generation.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.The diplomatic stalemate between the US and Iran has spiralled into one of the most severe energy crises in modern history. The failure to secure a breakthrough agreement has left the global energy market reeling from an unprecedented supply shock, with policymakers appearing as helpless as cats chasing the shadows of birds overhead.The West Asia conflict and blockade of the Strait of Hormuz triggered a historic drain on global oil inventories, which plunged by 246 million barrels across March and April alone.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.US President Donald Trump’s description of his China visit as “very successful” and “unforgettable” may be as self-congratulatory as his claims of victory over Iran.Trump, in his own telling, had a successful stay in Beijing during a presidential visit that came after nearly a decade and at a crucial juncture in American diplomacy.Having painted himself into a corner by underestimating a sanctions-hit Iran, which now has the world economy in a chokehold through the Strait of Hormuz, he was clearly hoping to secure the Asian giant's help in ending the impasse, not just for favourable economic deals.He claimed to have concluded several trade deals, including an order for 200 Boeing jets that could rise to 750 if the aircraft maker performs well. China also agreed to purchase 400-450 engines from General Electric, he added.Except there were no mentions of these by his host, Chinese President Xi Jinping, whom Trump described as an “incredible guy” to Fox News reporters on 15 May while returning home.In fact, his 14 May meeting with Xi at the Great Hall of the People suggests he may have been told, politely, that he no longer holds all the cards.A Chinese readout said Xi noted that “transformation not seen in a century is accelerating across the globe, and the international situation is fluid and turbulent.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia carried out multiple strikes against Iran after their countries were attacked by the regime in the early days of the war, showing the depth of the Gulf states’ involvement in the conflict and how much the region’s geopolitics have been transformed.Before the war, strikes by the Gulf states on their large and heavily armed neighbor and rival for power in the Middle East would have been unthinkable. But new details have emerged that give a clearer picture of how directly they fought in the war, upending a careful balance the countries had sought to achieve.The U.A.E.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.The war in Iran has triggered the largest oil-supply disruption in modern history.The crisis in the Strait of Hormuz is forcing governments to redefine energy security for an age of geopolitical fragmentation—one in which resilience depends not only on how much oil the world produces, but where it flows, who can get it and which countries are able to absorb the shock when it is interrupted.Nearly 15% of global oil supply has been removed from the market. Crude prices remain elevated above $100 a barrel after initially spiking higher. They will very likely move sharply higher as inventories run dry.But while the oil market is global and rising costs are felt everywhere, the consequences are not evenly distributed.Asia has been hit first and hardest.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: In a move aimed at deepening India’s commodity derivatives market, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is holding early-stage discussions with market infrastructure institutions to allow foreign portfolio investors to trade bullion derivatives without participating in physical settlement, according to two people familiar with the matter.Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are currently allowed to trade only in non-agri commodity derivatives that are cash settled, such as crude oil and natural gas contracts. Sebi had opened up that segment to foreign investors in June 2022.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: The US market regulator’s $18-million settlement of a civil case against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani and nephew Sagar Adani has no immediate bearing on a parallel criminal investigation initiated against them by the US Department of Justice (DoJ).The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Adanis acknowledged that the settlement does not grant them immunity from any criminal liability related to the case, they said in their filings with a New York court.“This settles the civil action brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission. It has no implications for the existing criminal charges brought by the DoJ or any other criminal investigation that may be pending,” said Russell A.