US venture capital fund Silicon Road Ventures has partnered with former Bank of America India MD Ajay Mahajan to launch a Rs 150-crore alternative investment fund. This fund will invest in early-stage startups developing Agentic AI solutions for B2B commerce technology, focusing on areas like supply chain and fintech.
Asian stocks declined as US inflation accelerated, influenced by rising oil prices following the conflict in Iran. This prompted an increase in Treasury yields and boosted bets on a Federal Reserve rate hike in 2027. Elevated oil prices and inflation risks now threaten the recent equity rebound, particularly impacting chipmakers.
The Indian rupee hit a record low for the second consecutive day, while key equity indices experienced their biggest single-day fall in six weeks. This decline was triggered by uncertainty surrounding US-Iran peace talks, which pushed oil prices higher, and Prime Minister Modi's austerity call, eroding market confidence and prompting dollar buying.
SEBI has fined Kishore Biyani, Rakesh Biyani, and former CFO C P Toshniwal a total of 50 lakh for violating disclosure norms and related party transaction rules in the Future Retail case. The regulator found inadequate disclosure of relationships and transactions, with some lacking mandatory approvals. The investigation also probed alleged manipulation of accounts and fund siphoning by promoters.
The new Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme 5.0 is set to boost mid-sized banks. These banks have a larger share of loans to micro, small, and medium enterprises. The scheme aims to facilitate significant credit flow. Government guarantees will encourage lending to MSMEs. This initiative is expected to strengthen credit to this vital sector.
The fund sold about 2.57 crore shares, or 6.86% of its total equity. Nomura India Equity Fund was the buyer of these shares. Fedbank shares ended 1.9% lower at 149.51 on Tuesday.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has proposed a pilot program to allow select agricultural commodity derivatives to trade as cash-settled instruments before mandatory physical settlement. This initiative aims to boost liquidity and market confidence in agricultural contracts, with commodities like maize, groundnut, and chilli being considered for the pilot.
Indian IT stocks experienced a significant downturn on Tuesday, with the Nifty IT index plummeting 3.7% to a three-year low. This decline was triggered by OpenAI's substantial investment in AI adoption, raising concerns about its impact on traditional software services business models.
