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Iran growing uranium stockpile to weapons-grade levels: UN nuclear watchdog
Iran has expanded its stockpile of uranium enriched close to weapons-grade levels, according to a confidential report from the UN nuclear watchdog. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) urged Tehran to immediately change direction and cooperate with its ongoing investigation.
The report, accessed by The Associated Press and compiled by the Vienna-based IAEA, revealed that as of May 17, Iran had accumulated 408.6 kgs of uranium enriched up to 60 per cent. This is an increase of 133.8 kgs since the last report in February, which had recorded a total of 274.8 kgs.
Uranium enriched to 60 per cent is only a short technical step away from weapons-grade material, which is enriched to 90 per cent. IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has repeatedly pointed out that Iran is the only country without nuclear weapons that is enriching uranium to such a high level.
On Saturday, Grossi again called on Iran to work with the IAEA. 'He reiterates his urgent call upon Iran to cooperate fully and effectively with the IAEA,' the report said.
Tensions amid US-Iran talks
The timing of the report is significant, as Iran and the United States have been engaged in several rounds of talks about a possible nuclear agreement — an effort being pursued by US President Donald Trump.
On Thursday (May 29), top Iranian officials rejected speculation about a near-term agreement with Washington. They stressed that any deal must include the full removal of sanctions and allow the continuation of Iran's nuclear programme.
Trump still hopeful for agreement
Trump said on Friday that he believes a deal is still possible soon. 'They don't want to be blown up. They would rather make a deal,' Trump said, referring to Iran. He added, 'That would be a great thing that we could have a deal without bombs being dropped all over the Middle East.'
Trump also mentioned that he had advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to hold off on attacking Iran's nuclear facilities while talks are ongoing.
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Time of India
35 minutes ago
- Time of India
Regulators realising fintechs are here to stay: QED's Nigel Morris
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Fintechs have a role to play in the future of how financial services are delivered, he visit comes at a time when India's fintech sector is navigating tighter regulatory oversight, particularly around unsecured lending and digital compliance. He sees this not as a setback, but as a necessary phase. 'It's a natural course laying the groundwork for the next wave of innovation.'Referring to the recently released QED–BCG Global Fintech Report, Morris said, fintechs are not only growing faster than incumbents, they're starting to dominate key categories. 'Earned wage access (allowing employees to access a part of their wages before the payday) is a great example—Refyne in India operates in a space where there isn't a single incumbent,' he said. 'In money transfers, it used to be Western Union, now it's Wise and Remitly. For buy now, pay later, Klarna and Affirm are dominating, not banks. In neo-banking, look at Nubank, Monzo and Chime. What we're seeing is that incumbents, either by default or by design, are simply not playing in these spaces.'It would be 'very interesting' to see how India's landscape evolves, whether the legacy players step up or continue to lag behind, he said. 'Their (banks') skills might not be as relevant; they've got other things on their mind.'A key trend QED is tracking is how artificial intelligence is reshaping financial services from underwriting to product delivery. 'Fintechs are adopting AI at a much faster rate than incumbents. That's not surprising,' said Morris. 'They're more digital, more tech-centric and faster in how they move.'This tech-led agility, he said, is giving fintechs an edge in product innovation, risk assessment and consumer engagement, while legacy institutions are still weighed down by infrastructure and regulatory US-based fund plans to deploy $250–300 million in early- and growth-stage startups across India and the Asia-Pacific region. Armed with a $925 million fund raised in 2023, QED is eyeing investments across Indonesia, Singapore, Japan and other APAC the past five years, the fintech-focused VC firm has invested roughly $220 million in Asia. Its India portfolio includes early bets in neo-banking platform Jupiter, credit card sourcing platform OneCard, financial infrastructure startup Upswing and Efficient Capital Labs, which offers financing solutions for SaaS companies. In December 2024, QED led a $25 million funding round in OneCard While India's fintech sector has faced increasing regulatory scrutiny, especially around NBFCs (non-banking financial companies) and unsecured lending, Morris doesn't see this as a deterrent. 'The regulators stepped in with a cautionary stance—rightly so,' he said. 'They said we have to really think about AML, KYC and about a little bit more scrutiny to make sure that the banks that partner with the fintechs are living up to the responsibilities that they have. From there, move to a new equilibrium… I think that's a natural cycle.'QED Asia head Sandeep Patil, who oversees India investments, echoed the view. 'I'm not turning a blind eye to what's happened. Yes, regulations have slowed lending and caused short-term pain. But we're far more optimistic about the long term,' he reset in the fintech market has affected funding in the sector. Cred is in talks to raise fresh funds at an around $4 billion valuation—down from $6.4 billion in 2021, as reported by ET on April 14 . QED portfolio firm Klarna of Sweden dropped from $46 billion to $6.7 billion before recovering to a targeted $15 billion ahead of IPO . Stripe went from $95 billion to $50 billion before a tender offer lifted its valuation to $91.5 billion.'The rise and fall played out over just two and a half years,' Morris said. 'But in the last year, things have been relatively stable.'He noted that public fintechs traded at 4–5x revenue pre-Covid, surged to 20x during the digital wave, and are now returning to more rational however, continues to buck that trend. 'India benefits from a roaring wind at its back, strong GDP growth and a different economic cycle compared to the US, UK, or Latin America,' he bullish on India, QED remains measured on certain sub-sectors like neo-banking.'Many haven't demonstrated meaningful product engagement or cross-sell success,' said Patil. 'They either don't have a wide enough product suite, or they haven't had enough traction on the core banking product. Then you're just another account inside someone's app—and the story doesn't go anywhere.'Still, Morris believes that the good fintechs will earn regulatory trust and potentially, banking licences. 'In the long run, I believe some of them will end up with licences at different speeds in different markets,' he said. 'But there's still room for strong partnerships between good fintechs and good banks. That's the opportunity.'Morris has long pushed back against the hypergrowth-at-all-costs mindset that defined much of the past decade's startup boom. 'I've always railed against the model of blitzscaling in financial services—the idea that you acquire a load of customers, lose money on every one of them, and figure out the model later. I've never believed in that,' he said. 'We are incredibly meticulous and focused on unit economics.'In the Indian context, that model faces even more pressure. 'The cost to acquire it is really low. But the ARPU (average revenue per user) is equally low,' he said. 'So, we're playing a different economic game. In the end, how those two net off is critical. You're dealing with a much larger customer base with thinner economics per user. The bet is on how big they can get, who they can partner with, and what else they can sell and at what rate.'
Time of India
35 minutes ago
- Time of India
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Time of India
35 minutes ago
- Time of India
Most listed new-age startups improve Q4 profitability; Swiggy, Ola lag behind
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Among the lot of these 17 companies, beauty and fashion retailer Nykaa and Policybazaar parent PB Fintech were the top performers, having posted 24% and 38% year-on-year growth in revenue for the fourth quarter, while also more than doubling their profits. ETtech Brokerages underscored the improvement in margins for these two companies, which went public in 2021, suggesting the momentum could continue. For PB Fintech, Citi Research highlighted a one-percentage-point expansion in contribution margins for the March quarter — which came after three quarters of contraction — in addition to reduced expenses on employee stock option plans as key drivers behind its strong profitability momentum. Live Events On Nykaa , brokerage firm JM Financial said strong working capital enhancement ensured that the company had its first year of positive cashflow since Covid, after adjusting for lease liabilities and capital expenditure. 'We believe core BPC (beauty and personal care) will benefit from repeat purchases from customers acquired this year, resulting in sharper margin improvement in the coming years. Nykaa's ability to deliver robust growth in a tepid demand environment along with margin enhancement demonstrates its differentiated market positioning,' the firm said. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories Beauty retailer Honasa Consumer , the parent of Mamaearth, meanwhile saw its profits falling 15% during the quarter on back of the company's offline restructuring exercise. The company's management indicated that it is now expected to see the positive impact of the rejig. ETtech Quick burn The fourth quarter saw increased cash burn for Gurgaon-based Zomato parent Eternal and Bengaluru-headquartered Swiggy in their quick commerce units, Blinkit and Instamart , respectively. 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In terms of competitive intensity, while the next few months are tactically favourable for Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart, competition may get intense again in the second half of this year and next year (2026),' it said. EV mixed bag For Ola Electric, the March quarter saw not only expanding losses but also a significant fall in revenue as the company went from being the leader in electric two wheeler segment to now falling behind legacy players such as TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto in terms of market share. Analysts at Kotak Institutional Equities, while downgrading their call on Ola Electric's stock to 'sell', said its future 'hinges on scaling up volumes' and a 'successful motorcycle foray', and that the company 'faces executive and credibility challenges'. According to the brokerage firm, the company's performance during the past couple of quarters has been marred by weaker scooter volumes and rising warranty provisions, which have weighed on its profitability. 'Volume trends have been impacted by increased competitive intensity and several quality issues faced by customers,' the analysts added. The company's operating revenue for the March quarter came in at Rs 611 crore – lower than its rival Ather Energy, which posted Rs 676 crore in top line . To be sure, Ather Energy, which went public in May, clocked less than half the scooter volumes compared with la Electric in fiscal 2025. Even though Ola Electric's losses expanded, Ather Energy saw its loss narrowing 17% during the March quarter. Logistics on firm ground New-age logistics firm Delhivery and truck aggregator platform BlackBuck both reported profits for the fourth quarter, compared to losses in the year-ago period. For Delhivery, the profitability in the March quarter meant it posted its first full year of net profit as its core transportation business continued to show improvement in operating efficiencies. BlackBuck, which went public last year, reported a net profit of Rs 280 crore, a major chunk of which was on account of a one-time tax credit. However, even on a pre-tax basis, BlackBuck turned profitable, reporting a Rs 41 crore profit, as it tightened expenses particularly under the heads of employee benefits and interest costs.
