Top 10 Business, Markets News In Under 5 Minutes: BQuick On Feb. 17
BQuick | Top news, must-read stories and columns – all served up in less than 5 minutes.
Here’s a roundup of the day’s top stories in brief.
1. Out-Of-Court Settlement With Cairn Energy?
The oil and gas major’s Chief Executive Simon Thomas will meet Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey on Feb. 18, two months after it won a $1.2 billion arbitration case against India. The government is likely to offer an out-of-court settlement, according to a person familiar with the matter.
2. Rs 3,100-Crore Bharti-Warburg Deal
Bharti Airtel Ltd. will buy back a 20% stake in its digital unit from Warburg Pincus for Rs 3,126 crore to regain control of the company and study options to unlock value.
3. CFO Leaders: Koushik Chatterjee
Generating internal capital
Balancing de-leveraging with growth
Making cost containment a culture
Read what Tata Steel Ltd. Chief Financial Officer has to say on the finance lessons from the pandemic.
4. Sensex Drops 400 Points; Bitcoin Tops $51,000
Indian equities ended lower for the second consecutive day as technology stocks and drugmakers continued to underperform. The S&P BSE Sensex ended 0.8% lower at 51,703 while the NSE Nifty 50 index managed to close above its support zone of 15,200.
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Bitcoin scales $51,000 for the first time.
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India’s biggest builder makes another attempt at selling shares.
5. Religare Finvest Submits Two Resolution Plans To RBI
Small business lender Religare Finvest Ltd. has submitted two potential resolution plans to the Reserve Bank of India for final approval before implementing one of them, according to people familiar with the matter.
6. Paytm Looks To Disrupt F&O Trading
Paytm Money has started offering futures and options trading by charging fee as low as Rs 10 per trade as it looks to take on larger peers. But the disruption also opens up a pandora’s box for retail investors.
7. Bollywood Stars, Bankers Go House Hunting In Mumbai
India’s wealthy are purchasing high-end apartments in some of the toniest locations in Mumbai, the most expensive city for real estate. Recent buyers include actors Alia Bhatt, Janhvi Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan, former Indian cricketer Zaheer Khan and actor wife Sagarika Ghatge, cricketer Shreyas Iyer, and HDFC Group veteran Keki Mistry. That has triggered a surge in prices of such luxury units.
8. RBI Keeps 10-Year Bond Yield In Check But...
The central bank’s efforts to keep 10-year bond yields at near 6% have worked for now, despite a rise in global bond yields which are reacting to rising commodity prices. Beyond the 10-year central government bond, however, interest rates are rising across many segments.
9. India's Weak Public Finances Vs Rising Growth
The downside that comes from widening of India’s fiscal deficit and higher debt is being balanced by the expected sharp rebound in growth, S&P Global Ratings said. However, lower growth could cause strain and force a rethink on sovereign ratings.
10. MJ Akbar Loses Defamation Case Over Sexual Harassment Allegations
Former minister MJ Akbar lost the defamation suit against journalist Priya Ramani, who has accused him of sexual harassment in 2018. Acquitting Ramani from criminal defamation charges, the Delhi court said “a woman cannot be punished for raising their voice on the pretext of criminal defamation”.
Ramani is a BloombergQuint contributor.
