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Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Fastag adoption in slow lane; UIDAI CEO interview
Fastag adoption in slow lane; UIDAI CEO interview Also in the letter: Fewer use cases take toll on Fastag growth In numbers: Limited application: Fastag was initially meant to digitise highway tolls, but over time, it was expected to evolve into a broader vehicle-linked payment system, covering everything from fuel to parking. While some adoption has trickled in for parking, fuel remains largely untouched, according to a fintech founder. Cost issue: Roadblocks: Yes, but: Also Read: UIDAI searches for more ways to curb Aadhaar, UID fraud Driving the news: Harnessing AI: Also Read: What's next: Also Read: Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: IT companies tighten belt as AI, macro headwinds squeeze biz margins Reading signs: For instance: HCLTech trimmed its margin guidance for the first time in several quarters, now projecting 17%-18%, down from 18%-19%. TCS took an 80 basis point margin hit in Q1, mainly due to rising employee costs. Experts said top-tier firms are tightening the screws with measures such as cutting variable pay, deferring raises, and managing bench strength more stringently. Expert take: Keeping Count Other Top Stories By Our Reporters ETtech Explainer: CoinDCX cyberattack | Rebel Foods' new CEO: Towards D-Street: Global Picks We Are Reading Happy Monday! Fastag saw limited growth last fiscal, with momentum tapering off. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.■ IT firms face double whammy■ Explained: CoinDCX cyberattack■ Rebel Foods' new CEOFastag, the electronic toll payment system for vehicle owners, has been stuck in neutral since early user base remains flat at around 350-380 million, and the number of participating banks has held steady at 38. Both figures have shown no movement in over a year, pointing to an apparent plateau in adoption.A key reason, industry insiders say, is the lack of fresh use cases beyond highway economics don't help either. Installing Fastag-enabled gates costs between Rs 1.5-2 lakh per gate, making it a tough sell for smaller commercial fintech startups have also stepped back, industry insiders say. They added that disillusioned with the revenue potential from digital payments, they have largely avoided launching new initiatives. The lack of incentives has further stalled innovation.'No new-age fintech is currently pumping funds into digital payments. Fastag and such payment methods needed incentives for more customers to use them readily. In the absence of incentives, new use-cases are not building up,' said the founder of a digital payments to that the headache of poor bank-led customer service—especially for recharge failures or blacklisted tags—and Fastag's once-impressive momentum has all but Kumar, CEO, UIDAIAmid rising concerns of Aadhaar-related fraud, the Unique Identity Authority of India (UIDAI) is tightening safeguards around the national ID system, CEO Bhuvnesh Kumar told curb misuse, the agency tasked with issuing Aadhaar will now verify changes to birth dates and biometrics directly with source databases across states, Kumar said. So far, UIDAI has integrated records from 35 states, linking them with key databases such as PAN, CBSE mark sheets, and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).Technology is central to the effort. UIDAI is rolling out artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning tools to flag fake fingerprints, enable 'live finger' checks, improve facial recognition, and estimate age using visual data. It also matches photos against the Bureau of Immigration records to catch fraudulent attempts.'When someone submits documents for Aadhaar enrolment or updates, we'll check them at the source to ensure they're genuine,' Kumar agency is working to move Aadhaar applications fully online. Demand from non-citizens living in India has also picked up. Still, UIDAI remains firm that they must complete 180 days in the country and apply under the correct category before becoming Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship Q1 earnings roll in, India's top IT firms are grappling with a double whammy : persistent macroeconomic pressures and AI-led efficiencies that are beginning to squeeze April and June, companies pulled every internal lever to shield profitability, even as momentum on large deals continued to slow. Analysts believe this playbook will likely persist through the rest of the fiscal added that revenue may see a modest lift from pent-up demand. However, margins are expected to stay under pressure as firms double down on cost discipline and operational rigour.'FY26 is a margin protection and margin expansion year,' Gaurav Vasu, CEO of data and research platform UnearthInsight, told ET. 'Large deal wins are not yet translating to revenue acceleration, so lead indicators (pipeline, bookings) matter—but execution and conversion will be critical in H2 FY26.'Indian cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX suffered a cyberattack on July 19, stealing digital assets worth around $44 million from one of its internal operational kitchen company Rebel Foods has named cofounder Ankush Grover as its new chief executive, replacing Jaydeep Barman, who will transition into a chairman and group CEO AceVector Group, the holding company of Snapdeal and Unicommerce, said in a newspaper advertisement on Saturday that it has filed draft documents with the capital markets regulator for an initial public offering.■ AI groups spend to replace low-cost 'data labellers' with high-paid experts ( FT ■ A major AI training data set contains millions of examples of personal data ( MIT Tech Review ■ How the rise of green tech is feeding another environmental crisis ( BBC
Time of India
7 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Wipro's Q1 report; Former Nexus MD's new fund
Next Wipro's Q1 report; Former Nexus MD's new fund Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox? Also in the letter: Wipro Q1 profit rises 11% YoY; CEO says AI now central to clients Snapshot: Net profit: up 11% YoY and down 6.7% QoQ to Rs 3,330 crore, just ahead of expectations. up 11% YoY and down 6.7% QoQ to Rs 3,330 crore, just ahead of expectations. Revenue: marginal rise to Rs 22,134 crore. marginal rise to Rs 22,134 crore. Interim dividend: Rs 5 per share; record date is July 28. Rs 5 per share; record date is July 28. Total deal wins: $4.97 billion, up 50.7% YoY in constant currency; large deals more than doubled to $2.7 billion. Strategic lens: Operating margin in the IT services business rose to 17.3%, up 80 basis points. Cash flow came in strong at Rs 4,110 crore, 123% of net profit. Outlook: Also Read: LTIMindtree Q1 consolidated profit jumps 11% YoY to Rs 1,255 crore; revenue up 8% Number-wise: Net profit at Rs 1,254 crore. at Rs 1,254 crore. Revenue increased 7.6% YoY to Rs 9,840 crore. increased 7.6% YoY to Rs 9,840 crore. Operating margin at 14.3%. at 14.3%. The company paid a final dividend of Rs 45 per share. Sameer Brij Verma's solo fund Northpoint raises $150 million Focus areas: Status check: Why it matters: Zoom out: Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: SaaS startups tailor new green solutions for fashion industry Tell me more: Automate climate compliance. Track carbon emissions with precision. Make greener decisions across their supply chains. Decode consumer demand using AI and machine learning. Here's how: What else? Newme has a 30-member tech team working on supply chain efficiency. Myntra and Flipkart crunch browsing data to forecast demand. India is estimated to produce approximately 7,800 kilotonnes of textile waste annually, according to reports. Byju's founders plan $2.5 billion lawsuit against Glas Trust, others for reputational damage Legal moves: Backdrop: Meanwhile: Keeping Count Other Top Stories By Our Reporters Solicitor general defends govt's takedown regime in X HC case: Zoho debuts in-house LLM and AI agents: Karnataka CM pulls up Meta for 'misleading' Kannada translations: Global Picks We Are Reading Happy Friday! IT major Wipro reported an 11% rise in net profit, just ahead of Street expectations. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.■ SaaS solution for sustainability■ Byju's founders vs Glas Trust■ Solicitor general on X vs govtSrini Pallia, CEO, WiproIn a sluggish IT spending climate, Wipro's topline stayed muted in the June quarter, but strong deal momentum offered a silver Srini Pallia flagged ongoing macro uncertainty but noted rising demand for cost efficiency and AI-led transformation. 'AI is no longer experimental, it's central to our clients' strategies,' he expects flat to 1% sequential growth in Lambu, CEO, LTIMindtreeLTIMindtree on Thursday posted 11.2% sequential and 10.5% year-on-year growth in net profit for the April-June quarter, helped by recovery in the European and North American markets and in the consumer business, healthcare, life sciences, and public services Brij Verma, who left Nexus Venture Partners last year, has closed a $ 150 million solo GP (general partner) fund, Northpoint Capital, according to people familiar with the will back 15-20 early-stage startups, writing cheques between $1 million and $8 million. While the fund will primarily lead or join early rounds, it may selectively double down on 90% of the capital comes from global institutions, including endowments and fund-of-funds, with the remaining 10% contributed by Indian family offices and high-net-worth individuals. Northpoint is registered with Sebi and is awaiting final regulatory clearances to onboard limited partners (LPs).Verma, known for early bets on Postman, Unacademy, and at Nexus, plans to back founders building with AI and core technology in sectors such as fintech, healthcare, and logistics. ET first reported his independent ambitions in March of last joins a flurry of new funds in a cautious LP climate where capital is flowing to proven managers with sharp thesesETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship fashion industry has long grappled with waste, excess inventory, and growing environmental damage. As consumption surges, artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as an unexpected ally , helping the sector tread more lightly on the (SaaS) firms like GreenStitch and Stylumia are arming brands and manufacturers with tools to:GreenStitch pulls massive datasets from across the supply chain to guide brands on compliance and trend forecasting. Stylumia and Zylod cut fashion waste by matching design with consumer brands and online retailer giants are pushing beyond basic AI assistants, using data to stay one step ahead of Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath, founders, Byju'sByju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath are preparing to sue Glas Trust and other Byju's lenders, seeking over $2.5 billion in damages for what they claim is reputational harm. Their lawyers confirmed the move in a statement on founders plan to take the fight to both Indian and international courts. They've accused Glas Trust, Byju's US arm Alpha, and their legal teams of 'reprehensible and improper' lenders allege that Raveendran, Gokulnath, and former CSO Anita Kishore attempted to conceal $533 million from a $1.2 billion term loan. Earlier this month , a Delaware court held Raveendran in civil contempt for failing to is challenging the court's jurisdiction. In India, partial proceedings are underway, including a petition by former promoter Riju Ravindran to remove Glas Trust as a union government on Thursday told the Karnataka High Court that it invokes Rule 3(1)(d) of Information Technology Rules to flag illegal content to online intermediaries, who can decide whether to take down the material or risk the matter going to Corp launched a proprietary large language model (LLM) and a suite of artificial intelligence agents on Thursday as the software company seeks to deepen its AI 'faulty auto-translation of Kannada content on Meta Platforms is distorting facts & misleading users. This is especially dangerous when it comes to official communications,' CM Siddaramaiah wrote in a post on X.■ Where are all the AI drugs? ( Wired ■ Venture capitalists seek a ride on the defence bandwagon ( FT ■ Fed up with ChatGPT, Latin America is building its own ( Rest of World
Time of India
16-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Zepto Cafe cools; Ecommerce sales pick up
Zepto Cafe cools; Ecommerce sales pick up Also in the letter: Zepto Cafe scales down amid sourcing, staffing hurdles By the numbers: Daily order volumes fell to 65,000–67,000 in May and June, down from 120,000–130,000 at their peak. Back in February, founder and CEO Aadit Palicha had claimed on LinkedIn that the service had crossed 100,000 daily orders. Zepto pulled the plug on Cafe operations at 44 of roughly 1,000 dark stores in May. Behind the scenes: Also Read: What's next: Also Read: Mid-year ecomm sales spike sets the stage for cracking festive season Bright ecommerce outlook: Uptick in sales: Festive sale preparations: Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Scoring with AI not enough to crack US enterprise code Moving timelines: Too little time: Firms don't have enough time to demo with every firm that approaches them. The market is 'equally miserable' for buyers, another founder, Vivek Khandelwal said. The field has become too noisy, confusing the buyers as well. Strategic partnerships: Keeping Count Other Top Stories By Our Reporters Trupeer AI bags $3 million: Voice AI startup Navana AI raises Rs 7 crore: A Shux-cess: WeWork India's road to IPO: Global Picks We Are Reading Happy Wednesday! Zepto's 10-minute food delivery arm has scaled down operations due to multiple hurdles. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.■ Indian AI startups take US flight■ ETtech Done Deals■ Shubhanshu Shukla returns to EarthZepto Cafe, the 10-minute food delivery arm of quick commerce firm Zepto, is scaling down operations as it battles supply chain issues and a shortage of trained kitchen staff. The slowdown comes just as rivals Blinkit's Bistro and Swiggy's Snacc push deeper into key urban company has hit pause on several fried items as it retools its kitchen workflows. Suppliers say Zepto Cafe has cut back on order volumes and delayed pickups, with some reporting a fall in monthly order value from Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 40–50 Zepto trims its cash burn and recalibrates, the company is in talks with investors, including General Catalyst and Avenir Growth, to raise $500 million ahead of a planned IPO in order volumes during the recent sale window rose 19% over the same time last year, well ahead of the sector's annual growth rate of 10–12% in 2024. Deep discounts helped fuel demand across various categories, including smart TVs, headphones, air conditioners, kids' essentials, and July 11-14 sale window saw overlapping campaigns from marketplaces like Amazon India, Flipkart, and a clutch of D2C brands. Analysts say this burst of activity could boost performance in the ongoing quarter, offering a breather amid what has otherwise been a sluggish period for such as boAt, Eume, Uppercase, Atomberg, Solara and Zouk reported a strong jump in gains. Pradeep Krishnakumar, founder of fashion brand Zouk, said, 'Typically, Prime Day is seen as a play for legacy brands and for discounts. We saw something slightly different…that Zouk as a brand actually grew more than the category.'Several executives said this sale window effectively kicked off festive season preparations, with brands ramping up supply chains, launching new products, and pushing fresh categories. Many are now revising their Diwali forecasts upwards, looking to stock up in line with the current surge in Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship artificial intelligence (AI) startups heading to the US in search of growth are running into new roadblocks, founders and investors told ET. Fierce competition and slower decision-making are making it harder to close deals and run cycles that once lasted 6–9 months are now dragging on to 12–18, as enterprises test multiple solutions and delay fresh engagements, said Pradeep Ayyagari, cofounder of agentic platform SnowMountain AI, told Krishnan, founder of IT firm NuWare, added that big companies in the US now face pitches from 20 firms offering nearly identical cut through the clutter, startups are relying on investor networks and domain experts for warm introductions, while many founders are spending extended time in the US to stay close to customers and iterate more AI, an AI video platform, has raised $3 million in seed funding from early-stage investor RTP Global, with participation from Salesforce Ventures and angel has developed three products : a voice AI contact centre, a speech recognition API, and the contact centre intelligence API. The company currently has more than 40 clients supporting voice bots in over 12 languages across the 18 days in space, Group Captain and astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla felt gravity again on Tuesday . Stepping out of the Dragon capsule with a smile and the Indian flag on his shoulder, Shukla, or Shux, became the second Indian to travel to space and the first to enter the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the Axiom-4 (Ax-4) India Management, the country's largest premium flexible workspace operator by revenue, has received approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to launch its initial public offering.■ Microsoft and OpenAI's AGI fight is bigger than a contract ( Wired ■ xAI says it has fixed Grok 4's problematic responses ( TechCrunch ■ How BYD caught up with Tesla in the global EV race ( FT
Time of India
14-07-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
FAME fallout hits EV makers; Tête-à-tête with TCS CEO
FAME fallout hits EV makers; Tête-à-tête with TCS CEO Also in the letter: Smaller EV players wiped out after FAME red flag Sales tailspin: Okinawa Autotech: Annual sales crashed from 31,618 units in 2023 to 4,855 in 2024. Just 1,422 units have been sold till July this year. Annual sales crashed from 31,618 units in 2023 to 4,855 in 2024. Just 1,422 units have been sold till July this year. Ampere Vehicles (owned by Greaves Electric Mobility): Combined registrations under Ampere and Greaves fell to 26,963 units in 2025 so far, down from 36,148 in 2024 and 66,958 in 2023. Combined registrations under Ampere and Greaves fell to 26,963 units in 2025 so far, down from 36,148 in 2024 and 66,958 in 2023. AMO Mobility: Has sold just 25 vehicles in 2025. Has sold just 25 vehicles in 2025. Benling India: Only 95 vehicles were registered this year. Only 95 vehicles were registered this year. Hero Electric: Sales fell off a cliff—from 29,965 units in 2023 to 2,916 in 2024, and just 382 so far in 2025. The company is now undergoing insolvency proceedings. The issue: The issue: Refunds and resistance: Also Read: Market shift: Unfair to call TCS a one-trick pony: CEO Krithivasan Reason why: 'Not a one-trick pony': A new hope: Also Read: Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Amazon Prime Day boosts sales across categories, but smartphones lag Uptick in sales: Growth from last year: Tariff impact: Keeping Count Other Top Stories By Our Reporters Tata Tech doubles down on auto software: Devanahalli farmers propose price for tech park land: Global Picks We Are Reading Happy Monday! Electric two-wheeler makers are reeling from the FAME subsidies crackdown. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.■ Prime Day power-up■ Tata Tech priorities■ Devanahalli protestsElectric two-wheeler makers penalised for violating the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME-II) subsidy norms are now reeling , with several smaller players fading fast from the collapse follows the ministry of heavy industries pulling the plug on subsidies after audits found several firms flouting localisation rules under the Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP), part of the FAME-II. The government demanded refunds, with total clawbacks pegged at Rs 469 Greaves, and AMO Mobility have collectively returned Rs 170 crore. Others, including Hero Electric, Okinawa, and Benling, have taken the legal the non-compliant firms struggle, the spotlight has shifted to the bigger players. TVS Motor, Bajaj Auto, Ola Electric, and Ather Energy have expanded their grip on the segment, backed by robust supply chains and far greater consumer trust.K Krithivasan, CEO, TCSTata Consultancy Services (TCS) chief executive K Krithivasan has pushed back against suggestions that the company is a 'one-trick pony', after the software giant reported a third straight quarterly decline in dollar revenue. Speaking to ET in a post-results interview, Krithivasan said the slowdown was a result of a mix of factors in an unpredictable company is struggling with sluggish spending from aviation and retail clients, while the confusion in the EV space has also hit the auto sector hard. Clients, Krithivasan added, were focusing on programmes that reduce costs. While international revenue has stayed flat, domestic revenue also took a hit following the end of the BSNL however, doesn't make TCS overly reliant on one account. BSNL contributed only $1 billion to TCS's $30 billion revenue. Calling this out to call TCS a one-trick pony is a 'disservice', Krithivasan said. The company is proud of what it did with BSNL, but it has many other projects as well, and is not losing market share, he expects international business to rebound this year. TCS is now counting on a refreshed services strategy, leaner leadership, and AI to turn this Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship flagship Prime Day sale, exclusive to its Prime members, delivered a significant boost for brands across electronics, beauty and personal care, home and decor, and sellers reported a three- to fourfold jump in sales compared to last year's event, thanks to deep discounts and aggressive surge was particularly sharp for Solara, a home and kitchen brand. Founder and CEO Gopal Kolli said the company clocked five to six times its usual sales on the first day alone, doubling last year's Prime Day figures. 'With all the quick commerce, we weren't sure how it would perform, but it surprisingly did very well,' he analysts echoed the momentum. 'Across categories, we're seeing almost a two-to-threefold increase in both traffic and order volumes,' said Satish Meena, adviser at ecommerce consultancy Datum Amazon said the US edition (July 8-11) was its biggest Prime Day ever. Still, the event saw relatively muted discounting, with several brands opting out due to the tariff pressures triggered by policies under US President Donald accounted for 12.5% of all TV viewing time in the United States in May, while Netflix accounted for 7.5%, according to a Nielsen report. (Source: NYT Tata Technologies is increasing its focus on software-defined vehicle (SDV) offerings as global automakers shift research and development (R&D) priorities from mechanical components to software and electronics to promote in-car protesting farmers of Devanahalli have offered to sell their 450 acres to the government for a proposed high-tech park, on the condition that they receive Rs 3.5 crore per acre.■ 24 hours with Alexa Plus: we cooked, we chatted, and it kinda lied to me ( The Verge ■ Metadata shows the FBI's 'raw' Jeffrey Epstein prison video was likely modified ( Wired ■ Supporting mission-driven space innovation, for Earth and beyond ( MIT News
Time of India
04-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Banks rule UPI rails; Bizongo under scanner
Next Banks rule UPI rails; Bizongo under scanner Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox? Also in the letter: Four banks bag bulk of UPI beneficiary payments Driving the news: Both PhonePe and Paytm Payments Bank use Yes Bank's escrow accounts to process merchant payments. The bank now handles around 318 million daily transactions on the receiving side. Axis Bank also stepped up, growing its share from 7% in 2023 to about 10% now. Why it matters Concentration risk on UPI: Also Read: BFSI's big AI turn to move the business needle for slump-hit IT firms Purse strings: Now, as one of the earliest tech adopters, BFSI is also set to lead the AI and GenAI charge. It's expected to account for the largest share of spending on transformation, around 35–40%, totalling $270-290 billion, per Unearthinsight data. Accenture, which reported earnings for the March-May quarter, saw BFSI grow the fastest among its verticals, with 13% year-on-year growth. Muted Q1: TradeCred files criminal complaint against Bizongo, alleges Rs 69 crore fund misappropriation Go deeper: Context: In response: The big picture: Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Meesho files confidential prospectus for its IPO Driving the news: Tell me more: Also Read: Zoom in: Also Read: Keeping Count Other Top Stories By Our Reporters ISRO transfers 10 key space technologies to Indian firms: Peak XV leads Luma Fertility seed funding round: Global Picks We Are Reading Happy Friday! A small group of banks quietly control most of the money received through UPI. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.■ Meesho files for IPO■ ISRO tech transfer■ Luma Fertility fundraiseA small number of banks are quietly dominating the receiving side of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), India's preferred retail payments system. Yes Bank leads the pack, with nearly 40% market share, mainly driven by merchant Bank has doubled its share of payee-side UPI volumes in just two years.: While most conversations around UPI focus on payer-side risk and app dominance, the bank layer follows a similar pattern – only a few lenders are doing the heavy lifting behind the is considering a 30% market share cap for third-party UPI apps to reduce concentration risk. But the enforcement deadline has been pushed back by two IT industry may finally get a boost , and it's coming from its oldest and biggest client – BFSI. Long the top buyer of tech services, the sector is now expected to drive growth for the $280-billion IT industry, which has been stuck in a low-growth financial services and insurance (BFSI) makes up about 30% of the Indian IT sector's total revenue, going by data from Nasscom and we reported on Thursday, Indian IT firms are bracing for a weak June quarter , weighed down by sluggish deal has filed a criminal complaint against Bizongo, accusing the startup of misappropriating at least Rs 69 crore. The complaint, submitted to the Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing, names Bizongo's founders, CEO, and major investors, including Accel, B Capital, Chiratae, and receiving funds from invoice buyers through a controlled escrow setup, Bizongo allegedly diverted customer payments into its own bank instead of routing them through the designated escrow, in breach of contractual terms, according to TradeCred's according to TradeCred, constitutes a double recovery, where Bizongo benefited from both upfront invoice financing and the final payment from has already come under scrutiny for weak financial controls, which led to senior exits and a shift away from supply chain financing. The latest dispute highlights growing concerns about governance in India's booming private credit and invoice discounting on its part, said it has been steadily paying its dues, bringing down the outstanding principal from Rs 250 crore to Rs 66 crore. It added that a settlement plan has already been shared with case highlights how rapid growth and opaque business models in startup-led finance can leave retail investors dangerously exposed. TradeCred's move could trigger oversight of platforms offering invoice-based investment Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship Barnwal and Vidit Aatrey, founders, MeeshoEcommerce unicorn Meesho has confidentially filed its draft red herring prospectus with Sebi for a Rs 4,250 crore ($500 million) by SoftBank and Prosus, Meesho recently moved its domicile from the US to India. The company reported revenue of Rs 7,615 crore for FY24, a 33% year-on-year increase, while slashing its adjusted loss by 97% to Rs 53 joins a growing queue of Indian tech firms gearing up to go public, including Groww Pine Labs , and Urban Company . In FY25, the company processed 1.8 billion orders, demonstrating strong user adoption despite facing valuation all goes to plan, Meesho could become the first horizontal ecommerce platform to list on Indian exchanges. The IPO will be closely watched as a barometer for public investor interest in the scaled consumer businesses, ahead of Flipkart's much-anticipated listing next platform Meesho, which filed its papers for an IPO on Thursday, is targeting the largest fresh issue size among new-age companies at Rs 4,250 crore, followed by Rs 4,000 crore of edtech firm PhysicsWallah. ( ET Space regulator and promoter, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), facilitated the transfer of technology to six companies to encourage industry participation in the space value fertility-tech startup raised $4 million from Peak XV's Surge platform, with participation from Metropolis Healthcare chair Ameera Shah and B2V Ventures chairperson Vijay Taparia.■ AI is eating venture capital, or at least its dollars ( Axios ■ Deerhoof did not want its music 'funding AI battle tech' — so it ditched Spotify ( The Verge ■ The promise and peril of digital security in the age of dictatorship ( Wired
