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19May By PriyankaNo Comments

FUNDING

Lendingkart raises $40 Million in equity funding

Lendingkart Technologies raises $40 million (about Rs 320 crore) in an equity funding round led by existing investors including Fullerton Financial Holdings Pte Ltd (FFH), Bertelsmann India Investments, Sistema Asia Fund and IndiaQuotient. The series D round comprised two tranches INR 233 crore as part of D1, and INR 86.24 crores in D2 fund-raise, according to a company statement. Lendingkart has raised over Rs 1,050 crore of equity capital from investors till date. This funding will be deployed to expand the company's lending base and further reach out to small and underserved micro and small enterprises, and to further strengthen the company's technological and analytics capabilities, the company said. "The fresh round of equity funding reaffirms the support of our investors ...

18May By PriyankaNo Comments

BUSINESS

Thai Airways will file for bankruptcy

Thailand's flag carrier Thai Airways International will file a plan for restructuring its business with the Central Bankruptcy Court, a government spokeswoman said on Monday. Narumon Pinyosinwat said the plan submitted by the State Enterprise Policy Office to salvage the airline will be submitted Tuesday to for Cabinet approval. She said she had no details of the plan. Thai Airways had been suffering financially even before the coronavirus crisis brought travel and tourism in the country to a near standstill. The airline initially sought a 54 billion baht ($1.7 billion) bailout loan from the government. There is speculation that its reorganization under bankruptcy could take the government's ownership share below 50%, effecting a form of privatisation. All rescue options were like...

Swiggy to Lay off 1,100 employees, will give 3 months salary

18May By PriyankaNo Comments

News

Swiggy to Lay off 1,100 employees, will give 3 months salary

Food ordering and delivery platform Swiggy said it is laying off 1,100 employees across grades and functions in cities and the head office over the next few days due to the impact of coronavirus pandemic on its business, including cloud kitchens. In an email to all employees, SwiggyCo-founder & CEO Sriharsha Majety said, "Today is one of the saddest days for Swiggy as we have to go through an unfortunate downsizing exercise."COVID-19 has hit the company with a huge blow of uncertainty, forcing it to look even harder at its cost base and preparedness for the road ahead, he added. Giving the reasons for the laying off of 1,100 employees, Majety shared the management outlook and key business decisions that were reasons for this decision. The core food delivery business has been s...

18May By PriyankaNo Comments

FUNDING

Reliance Jio funding: Facebook, Silver Lake & others Invests $8.8 billion

India's leading telecom company Reliance Jio announced another funding round from US-based equity firm General Atlantic. General Atlantic invests $873 Million in Reliance Jio for 1.34% stake, the company said in a statement. This is the fourth deal of Investment in Reliance Jio in less than four weeks that will inject a combined $8.8 billion in the oil-to-telecom conglomerate to help it clear its debt. The Investment puts Reliance Jio's total value around $68 billion. According to the Pixr8 News data, the company has raised a total of $13.5 billion in funding over 9 rounds. The recent deal of General Atlantic follows Facebook picking up a 9.99 percent stake in the firm for $5.7 billion. Within days of that deal, Silver Lake, the world's largest tech investor bought a 1.15...

14May By PriyankaNo Comments

ANALYSIS

How Coronavirus Hit Jobs Globally

Since the pandemic hit, claims for unemployment benefits have soared in some countries notably the US and by far less in others, for example, Japan. According to the UN’s International Labour Organization, as job losses escalate, nearly half of the global workforce at risk of losing livelihoods. As a result of the economic crisis created by the pandemic, almost 1.6 billion informal economy workers (representing the most vulnerable in the labour market), out of a worldwide total of two billion and a global workforce of 3.3 billion, have suffered massive damage to their capacity to earn a living. This is due to lockdown measures and/or because they work in the hardest-hit sectors. The first month of the crisis is estimated to have resulted in a drop of 60 per cent in the income of i...

Sony to Launch World’s First AI based Intelligent Sensors

14May By PriyankaNo Comments

Tech

Sony to Launch World’s First AI based Intelligent Sensors

TOKYO, May 14, 2020-- Sony Corporation announced the upcoming release of two models of intelligent vision sensors, the first image sensors in the world to be equipped with AI processing functionality. Including AI processing functionality on the image sensor itself enables high-speed edge AI processing and extraction of only the necessary data, which, when using cloud services, reduces data transmission latency, minimizes any privacy concerns, and reduces power consumption and communication costs. These products expand the opportunities to develop AI-equipped cameras, enabling a diverse range of applications in the retail and industrial equipment industries and contributing to building optimal systems that link with the cloud. The new sensor products feature a stacked configurati...

Chinese investment lowest in US since 2009 But Coronavirus is not the reason

11May By PriyankaNo Comments

CHINA

Chinese investment lowest in US since 2009 But Coronavirus is not the reason

China's direct investment in the United States fell last year to its lowest level since the Great Recession, even before the coronavirus pandemic shut down much of global commerce. The decline in Beijing's investment in the United States reflected tensions between the world's two biggest economies and Chinese government restrictions on overseas investment. A report out Monday from the National Committee on US-China Relations and the Rhodium Group consultancy found that China's direct investment in the US dropped from USD 5.4 billion in 2018 to USD 5 billion last year, the lowest level since the recession year of 2009. Direct investment includes mergers, acquisitions and investments in things like offices and factories but not financial investments like purchases of stocks and bond...

Buying a VPN? Here are 5 Things to Look For

8May By PriyankaNo Comments

Tech

Buying a VPN? Here are 5 Things to Look For

VPNs have become quite popular especially due to the increase in surveillance, data breaches, geo-restrictions, censorships, etc. Having a good VPN can, therefore, go a long way in keeping your online activities private and secure, as well as enhancing your daily life by offering you internet freedom. However, there are hundreds of products in the market that you can choose from. This makes it hard to decide the right product for you, but there are some basic features everyone should look for. Unfortunately, most of these features are only found in premium VPNs. And although there are some great and truly free VPN providers, most of them are still out there to make money and may not provide you with the best experience. 1. Speed VPNs usually have an effect on your speeds d...

Airbnb lay off nearly 1,900 employees, about 25% workforce

6May By PriyankaNo Comments

News

Airbnb lay off nearly 1,900 employees, about 25% workforce

Airbnb, an online marketplace for homestays said it has laid off near 1900 employees, about 25 percent of the workforce of the company. In a note sent to Airbnb employees, Airbnb Co-Founder and CEO Brian Chesky said, "Out of our 7,500 Airbnb employees, nearly 1,900 teammates will have to leave Airbnb, comprising around 25% of our company. Since we cannot afford to do everything that we used to, these cuts had to be mapped to a more focused business. " These decisions are not a reflection of the work from people on these teams, and it does not mean everyone on these teams will be leaving us. Additionally, teams across all of Airbnb will be impacted. Many teams will be reduced in size based on how well they map to where Airbnb is headed, he added. Due to the Covid19, global travel c...

6May By PriyankaNo Comments

FUNDING

Satellite making platform gets $10 mn funding from Next Capital

Pune-based VestaSpace Technology on Wednesday said it has received USD 10 million (about Rs 75.8 crore) in funding from US-based investment and advisory firm Next Capital LLC. Founded in 2018 by Arun Kumar Sureban, VestaSpace Technology specializes in making small satellite platforms for commercial and scientific applications. "The massive financial support will enable VestaSpace Technology expand the reach of its innovative solutions across India and the world. The company estimates to achieve a 300 per cent growth rate post the funding," a statement said. "Our association with Next Capital LLC began with my stay in the US for a project and has culminated into a promising financial deal that was cracked in April. This deal is going to be a great financial booster for VestaSpace T...

Gold’s Gym file for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

6May By PriyankaNo Comments

News

Gold’s Gym file for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection

GGI Holdings, LLC and its affiliates Gold’s Gym filed for relief under Chapter 11 in an effort to facilitate the financial restructuring of the company. CEO Adam Zeitsiff said the filing will ensure the company’s viability for decades. The chain listed assets and liabilities of between $50 million and $100 million, according to its Chapter 11 petition filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Dallas. The company has furloughed most of its 4,600 employees in response to the crisis, per court papers. “Our focus is and always will be on our members around the world, and we look forward to welcoming them back as soon as it is safe for our members, team members and communities,” Zeitsiff said. “Gold’s Gym has been the world’s trusted fitness authority for more than 50 years, and we’re ab...

5May By PriyankaNo Comments

ACQUISITION

Intel Acquires Moovit for $900 Million

SANTA CLARA, Calif., May 4, 2020 – Intel Corporation has acquired Moovit, a mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) solutions company, for approximately $900 million ($840 million net of Intel Capital equity gain). Moovit is known for its urban mobility application that offers travelers around the world the best multimodal trip planning by combining public transportation, bicycle and scooter services, ride-hailing, and car-sharing. The addition of Moovit brings Intel’s Mobileye closer to achieving its plan to become a complete mobility provider, including robotaxi services, which is forecast to be an estimated $160 billion opportunity by 2030. “Intel’s purpose is to create world-changing technology that enriches the lives of every person on Earth, and our Mobileye team delivers on that pur...