Thursday, March 28

BUSINESS

Get all type of business news, Read Latest business News, Find latest business and economic market news

CarDekho to offer ESOP scheme worth $3.5 mn
BUSINESS

CarDekho to offer ESOP scheme worth $3.5 mn

Automobile portal CarDekho said it will offer an ESOP cash-out scheme worth USD 3.5 million (over Rs 24 crore) to about 100 of its current and former employees. CarDekho will allow eligible employees (current and former) to cash out 50 per cent of their vested options under Girnarsoft group's ESOP Exercise and Secondary Sale Plan, a statement said. "The current discretionary ESOP cash-out scheme is valid for both existing employees who have served 2 years and former employees who have served 4 years in the company and held vested options as of 31st January 2020," it added. The cash-out, estimated to be worth USD 3.5 million, is the second one this financial year, it added. The first ESOP cash out was announced in April last year, where Jaipur-headquartered CarDekho had bought ...
Google Cloud and Youtube Revenue Jumps, Alphabet Shares Slump 4 Percent
BUSINESS

Google Cloud and Youtube Revenue Jumps, Alphabet Shares Slump 4 Percent

Detailing its cloud computing and YouTube revenues for the first time, Alphabet reported that profits rose 19 percent from a year ago in the quarter to nearly $10.7 billion as revenues increased 17 percent to $46 billion. Alphabet and Google chief executive Sundar Pichai touted YouTube as a revenue star at the company, with ad revenue reaching $15 billion last year in an increase of about 36 percent from 2018. YouTube music and television premium services now have more than 20 million paid subscribers, according to Pichai. Despite assurances by executives that Alphabet sees plenty of money-making potential ahead and is investing to capitalize on long-term trends, Alphabet shares slipped more than four percent in after-market trades that followed release of the earnings figures. ...
Rahul Bajaj Step down, Become Non-Executive Chairman of Bajaj Auto
BUSINESS

Rahul Bajaj Step down, Become Non-Executive Chairman of Bajaj Auto

Bajaj Auto's long serving Chairman Rahul Bajaj will step down from executive role to become a non-executive director while continuing to hold his current position, the company said on Thursday. Bajaj, who has been a director of the company since April 1, 1970, was last reappointed by the board for a five-year term with effect from April 1, 2015, and his term as executive chairman is expiring on March 31, 2020, the company said in a regulatory filing. "Due to certain commitments and other pre-occupation, Rahul Bajaj has decided not to continue as a whole-time director of the company after the expiry of his current term on March 31, 2020," it added. Bajaj Auto further said its board of directors in a meeting held on Thursday approved his appointment as non-executive director with t...
McDonald’s Global Sales Surpass 100 bln USD in 2019
BUSINESS

McDonald’s Global Sales Surpass 100 bln USD in 2019

Fast food retail chain McDonald said its annual sales surpassed 100 billion U.S. dollars for the first time. McDonald's Chief Executive Officer Chris Kempczinski, who took charge in November after the former CEO was dismissed, said global comparable sales growth in 2019 was the chain's highest in more than 10 years. "2019 marked a year of significant milestones for McDonald's including surpassing 100 billion dollars in Systemwide sales and achieving our highest global comparable sales growth in over a decade," said Kempczinski. The company said it would spend more on technology and research in 2020, as the world's largest burger chain bets on revamped stores and menu additions to lure diners and gain market share. The company returned 2.3 billion dollars to shareholders throug...
Wipro Ventures Closes Second Fund of USD 150 mn
BUSINESS

Wipro Ventures Closes Second Fund of USD 150 mn

Wipro Ventures, the strategic investment arm of Wipro Limited has closed USD 150 million (about Rs 1,063 crore) Fund ll that will invest in enterprise software companies. "Buoyed by the success of its first USD 100 million fund launched in 2015, Wipro Ventures will continue to invest in early to mid-stage companies building innovative enterprise software solutions across key areas, including cybersecurity, application development, analytics, cloud infrastructure, test automation, and artificial intelligence," Wipro said in a regulatory filing. Wipro Ventures, managed by Biplab Adhya and Venu Pemmaraju, has invested in 16 early to mid-stage start-ups so far, including 11 in the US, 4 in Israel and 1 in India. ln addition to making direct equity investments, Wipro Ventures has also i...
Reliance Jio Net Profit Surges 62.5%
BUSINESS

Reliance Jio Net Profit Surges 62.5%

India's leading telecom operator Reliance Jio posted a 62.5 percent jump in its standalone net profit at Rs 1,350 crore for the October-December quarter of FY 2019-20. The telecom arm of Reliance Industries, Jio had posted a net profit of Rs 831 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago. The company recorded an increase of 28.3 per cent in its operating revenue at Rs 13,968 crore as compared to Rs 10,884 crore in the year-ago period. "Jio has continued on its unprecedented growth journey receiving overwhelming customer response for best in class mobile connectivity services. Jio is also determined to redefine the wireline infrastructure, home entertainment and enterprise market in India with its FTTx services which bundle best-in-class connectivity with bouquet of digital con...
Sachin Bansal’s Chaitanya India applies for Universal Banking License
BUSINESS

Sachin Bansal’s Chaitanya India applies for Universal Banking License

Within four months of Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal acquiring majority stake in Chaitanya India Fin Credit, the microlender applied to RBI for a universal bank license. Bansal had acquired Chaitanya in September with an investment commitment of Rs 739 crore. The Reserve Bank, which is very selective about who enters the banking fray, had earlier made universal bank licenses available on tap. If given a license, Chaitanya will be the second microlender after the West Bengal-focused Bandhan to be granted a universal banking license. Other microlenders operate as small finance banks. "Building a universal bank is a reflection of our commitment to provide financial services to those who need them most," Bansal, chief executive, Navi Technologies, which had invested in Chaitany...
LIC Pension and Group Scheme Vertical’s premium income crosses Rs 1 lakh crore
BUSINESS

LIC Pension and Group Scheme Vertical’s premium income crosses Rs 1 lakh crore

LIC Pension and Group Schemes Vertical, which is looking after group schemes and superannuation business, has created a new record by collecting more than Rs 1 lakh crore premium income during the current financial year. This is the first time ever any single vertical of the insurer has crossed this record premium income figure, LIC said in a statement. Pension and Group Schemes Vertical of LIC provides Employees Retiral Funds' Management Solution to the who's who of India Inc and has been steadily holding more than 80 per cent market share in NBPI post opening of the life insurance industry, it said. This vertical of LIC manages funds of well over Rs 7 lakh crore managing through about over 80,000 gratuity, superannuation and leave encashment schemes, it said.
BYJU’S reduces loss to Rs 8.82 crore in FY19; revenue up at Rs 1,305.92 cr
BUSINESS

BYJU’S reduces loss to Rs 8.82 crore in FY19; revenue up at Rs 1,305.92 cr

New Delhi, Dec 17, 2019: India's Online education startup BYJU''S has reduced its loss to Rs 8.82 crore, while registering manifold in revenue from operations, according to regulatory documents. Think & Learn Pvt Ltd, the entity that runs BYJU''S, reduced its loss to Rs 8.82 crore in the fiscal ended March 2019 from a loss of Rs 37.15 crore in FY18, documents sourced by Paper.vc showed. Revenue from operations also increased to Rs 1,305.92 crore in FY19 from Rs 471.18 crore in FY18, it added. Its total income increased to Rs 1,366.98 crore in FY19 from Rs 500.21 crore in the previous financial year, the document showed. In a statement, BYJU’S said its net revenue increased from Rs 490 crore in FY17-18 to Rs 1,341 crore with a net profit of Rs 20 crore in FY18-19. Its gr...
Accel India Raises $550 Million Fund
BUSINESS

Accel India Raises $550 Million Fund

Founded in Silicon Valley 35 years ago, VC firm Accel Indian subsidiary Accel India raises its sixth $550 fund. This is the largest fund amount Accel India has raised so far. "Accel India raises its first fund in 2005, the world was a very different place. Just one in 50 Indians had access to the internet and mobile phone ownership was nascent,” the company said in a press statement. India now has 600 million internet users and the country is also the home of more than 10,000 startups. Over the last 15 years, Accel has invested in more than 100 of these startups. “When we partnered with Freshworks in 2011, software-as-a-service as a category from India was almost non-existent. Our first cheque was $1 million when the company had six employees. Today, it has more than 2,500 emplo...
Yahoo Japan and Line Corp Announced Merger
BUSINESS

Yahoo Japan and Line Corp Announced Merger

Online services Yahoo Japan and Line Corp. have announced they are merging. Z Holdings Corp., which owns SoftBank Corp. that operates Yahoo Japan, and Naver Corp. of South Korea, which owns a majority stake in Line, said Monday they are aiming for a final agreement by next month. The combination in a joint venture through a tender offer will form an online giant with retail services, advertising and other mobile services such as messaging. The combined sales would be the largest among Japanese online business operators, surpassing Rakuten Inc.. The companies said combining forces will allow them to stay competitive in a drastically changing market, including expansions into robotics and other new areas. The integration will be carried out equally, according to the companies...
NY Times Advertising Profit Hits, Overall Ad Revenue decline
BUSINESS

NY Times Advertising Profit Hits, Overall Ad Revenue decline

The New York Times profits slipped in the third quarter as declines in advertising revenues offset gains in its digital subscription efforts. The prestigious US daily said it now has more than four million "digital only" subscribers and a total subscriber base of 4.9 million, with 500,000 outside the United States. Net profit for the quarter slid 34 percent from a year ago to $16.4 million, while total revenues rose 2.7 percent to USD 429 million. But while the Times increased revenue from its subscriber base, ad revenues were down for both print and digital. Overall ad revenue declined 6.7 percent from a year ago, including a 7.9 percent from print and 5.4 percent drop in digital. "Like other publishers, we're seeing continued turbulence in the digital advertising space," ...