Global technology consulting company LTIMindtree’s wholetime director and president of markets, Sudhir Chaturvedi has stepped down from his role to “explore new opportunities”. 

His last day with the company will be on January 27.

Chaturvedi joined LTIMindtree (then LTI) in 2016 as president and executive board member and continued in an expanded role after the merger with Mindtree. 

During this period, he led the company’s global markets strategy and oversaw key client relationships across North America, Europe and other emerging markets. 

Before LTIMindtree, he served as chief operating officer at NIIT Technologies Limited and held several leadership positions at Infosys, including senior vice president and head financial services – Americas.

LTIMindtree CEO and MD Debashis Chatterjee said, “Chaturvedi’s ability to lead with vision and foster meaningful relationships has left a profound impact on the organisation.”

The company, a Larsen & Toubro Group subsidiary, serves as a digital transformation partner to more than 700 clients globally and is powered by more than 86,000 professionals across 40 countries.

LTIMindtree, formed through the merger of L&T Infotech and Mindtree in November 2022, is an IT services provider. Recently, the technology consulting firm partnered with GitHub to accelerate AI-driven software engineering by integrating advanced DevOps tools and Generative AI capabilities.

Shares of LTIMindtree closed at INR 5827.45 on the BSE today (January 21), down 0.01% from its previous close.

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Reliance Industries Limited’s (RIL’s) digital arm Jio Platforms has rolled out a reward-based crypto token ‘JioCoin’ for JioSphere web browser users.

This marks the company’s foray into the cryptocurrency market.

JioCoin is a blockchain-based reward token built atop Ethereum Layer 2 and is currently listed on crypto platform Polygon Labs.

“Excited to share that our first integration with Jio Platforms Limited (JPL) is now live on JioSphere – Safe, Fast and Powerful Web Browser,” said Polygon Labs global payments head Aishwary Gupta in a LinkedIn post. 

While Reliance is yet to make an official announcement, both Android and iOS users have begun noticing the addition of JioCoins on the JioSphere browser. These Web3 coins will be available to desktop users soon.

The browser “now features native wallet integration powered by Polygon Labs PoS, where JioCoins will reside,” said Gupta. 

Users can earn JioCoins for free by surfing the internet on the JioSphere web browser. These Web3 coins will be deposited into their Polygon Labs wallet. The company is likely to dole out JioCoins to the users of JioCinema and MyJio in the coming days, according to reports.

Polygon Labs in an official statement last week announced a strategic partnership with Jio Platforms (JPL) for the latter’s Web3 and blockchain debut in India. 

“The partnership would aim to add Web3 capabilities to some of the existing applications and services owned and operated by JPL by leveraging Polygon’s cutting edge blockchain solutions to create innovative Web3 services for Jio’s existing 450+ million customers,” the company said in the statement. 

“Joining forces with Polygon Labs marks a significant milestone in Jio’s journey towards digital excellence. We are excited to explore the boundless possibilities of Web3 and bring unparalleled digital experiences to our users,” said Kiran Thomas, CEO at Jio Platforms.

This development comes at a time when Jio Platforms has scaled up its digital play in the past year by launching a clutch of new offerings, including AI cloud services, 4G feature phones and Bluetooth tracker JioTag Go.

To note, earlier this week, telecom giant Reliance Jio also rolled out its 4G and 5G services at the Siachen glacier. 

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Telecom major Bharti Airtel and non-banking financial company (NBFC) Bajaj Finance have announced a strategic partnership to offer financial services digitally to their customers.

In a joint statement, the two companies claimed that the collaboration will pave the way for the creation of India’s largest digital platform for financial services.

Under the partnership, the telecom major will initially offer Bajaj Finance’s financial products on its Airtel Thanks App. Thereafter, the telco will also offer Bajaj Finance’s suite of 27 offerings at its retail stores.

The companies have already begun a pilot of the service. While two financial products are live on the Airtel Thanks app so far, they plan to roll out four new financial offerings on the app by March this year, including gold loans, business loans, personal loans and a co-branded “Insta EMI” card.

Thereafter, Airtel plans to offer nearly 10 financial products of Bajaj Finance by the end of 2025.

With this partnership, Airtel and Bajaj Finance will look to leverage their phygital presence to deepen penetration of financial products and services. The companies added that the deal will enable them to tap into new-to-credit customers and integrate new users with the formal financial system.

Both companies, as part of the partnership, are committed to strong regulatory compliance, data privacy and security, and seamless customer service, added the statement. The two will also leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to “enhance efficiencies and elevate customer experiences”.

“… The combined reach, scale and distribution strength of the two companies will serve as the cornerstone of this partnership and help us succeed in the marketplace. We are building Airtel Finance as a strategic asset for the group and will continue to invest in and grow the business…,” said Bharti Airtel’s vice chairman and managing director Gopal Vittal.

Commenting on the collaboration, Bajaj Finance MD Rajeev Jain said, “… Our partnership with Airtel not only leverages India’s digital infrastructure for inclusive growth but also brings together the expertise and reach of two of India’s leading and most-trusted brands. Together with Airtel, we seek to be the financier of choice to India and enable millions to access financial services, even in remote areas.”

The development comes at a time when more and more Indian conglomerates are jumping into the fintech fray to capitalise on the growing demand for online financial services. Reliance is also looking to grab a share of the fintech pie through Jio Financial Services.

Such has been the scale that fintech ventures bagged 21% of the total $12 Bn funding raised by Indian startups in 2024. In total, the sector secured $2.5 Bn last year across 162 deals.

As per an Inc42 report, the homegrown fintech ecosystem is slated to become a $2.1 Tn market opportunity by 2030.

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Geotech giant MapmyIndia has partnered with US-based original equipment manufacturer Qualcomm Technologies to offer automotive connectivity solutions in India and overseas.

The collaboration aims to fuel ‘Make in India’ initiatives for the automotive sector, the company said in a BSE filing.

“Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a global leader in wireless technology innovation , and MapmyIndia, India’s leading advanced digital maps and deeptech company, today announced a technology collaboration aimed at supporting the ‘Make in India’ initiative for the automotive sector,” the filing added.

As per the statement, MapmyIndia will integrate Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis solutions including its auto connectivity platform to develop telematics solutions and facilitate efficient connectivity for Indian automakers.

Additionally, it will also integrate Qualcomm’s car-to-cloud services with MAPPLS automotive services to build a platform, aimed at managing device, data, maps, navigation and services.

“Our work with Qualcomm Technologies allows us to bring affordable, state-of-the-art telematics solutions to a broader segment of vehicles. This will enhance the driving experience for Indian consumers by enabling features that were previously available only in premium vehicles,” said MapmyIndia’s founder and chief managing director Rakesh Verma.

This partnership comes at a time when MapmyIndia is on an expansion spree. Last month, the listed major infused $4 Mn (around INR 33.8 Cr) to pick up 40% stake in its joint venture (JV) with Hyundai AutoEver, called PT Terra Link Technologies.

During the same time, MapmyIndia also picked up a 19.84% stake in location intelligence platform Kaiinos Geo Spatial Technologies Private Ltd by infusing INR 2 Cr.

Additionally, the board of MapmyIndia also approved the company’s proposal to invest an additional $0.5 Mn in its subsidiary CE International in one or more tranches. Besides, the company will also invest INR 3 Cr to acquire 9.37% stake in SaaS platform for automobiles SimDaaS Autonomy Private Ltd.

In November 2024, MapmyIndia’s chief executive officer and executive director Rohan Verma resigned from his position to form a new B2C business.

The geotech startup posted a 8% decline in its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to INR 30.35 Cr in the second quarter of FY25 from INR 33.09 Cr in the year-ago period. Meanwhile, its revenue from operations rose 14% to INR 103.67 Cr in the quarter under review, against  INR 91.08 Cr in Q2 FY24.

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Reliance Industries Ltd’s (RIL’s) digital arm Jio Platforms posted a 26% increase in its consolidated net profit to INR 6,861 Cr in the third quarter of the financial year 2024-25 (Q3 FY25) from INR 5,447 Cr in the year-ago quarter. 

On a sequential basis, profit grew 5% from INR 6,539 Cr . The EBITDA for the quarter stood at INR 16,585 Cr, up 18.8% from INR 13,955 Cr in Q3 FY24. However, EBITDA margin for the quarter dipped 30 basis points to 50.1% from 50.4% in Q3 FY24. 

Revenue from operations zoomed 19.2% to INR 33,074 Cr in Q3 FY25 from INR 27,697 Cr in the corresponding quarter of previous year. On a quarter on quarter basis, operating revenue grew 4.3% from INR 31,709 Cr.

The company attributed the growth in operating revenue to the partial impact of tariff hike, increase in pace of home connections, and accelerating non-connectivity digital services businesses.

Meanwhile, Reliance Jio Infocomm’s standalone profit for the quarter stood at INR 6,477 Cr, up 24% year-on-year (YoY). Its revenue from operations zoomed 16% YoY to INR 29,627 Cr. 

Jio Platforms’ average revenue per user (ARPU) surged to INR 203.3 per month at the end of the quarter as against INR 181.7 in Q3 FY24 and INR 195.1 in Q2 FY25. Total subscriber base stood at about 482 Mn, up 2.4% YoY, at the end of the December quarter.

The company said that the net subscriber addition in the quarter stood at 3.3 Mn with a monthly churn of 2%. It added that the customer addition rebounded to pre-tariff-hike levels in the exit month after transient SIM consolidation. 

Notably, Jio hiked the tariffs for its postpaid and prepaid plans by 12% to 25% from July 3. 

RIL said that Jio’s 5G customer base stands at over 170 Mn and accounts for 40% of the company’s wireless traffic. 

“JioAirFiber has transformed broadband connectivity in the country, especially beyond the top 1,000 cities/towns. More than 70% of incremental JioAirFiber additions are coming from these previously underserved cities/ towns. Overall pace of home connect for Jio has continued to accelerate with a total installed base of about 17 Mn,” the company said.

During the quarter, Jio also launched its AI powered cloud service offering JioAICloud. 

In August last year, RIL CMD Mukesh Ambani unveiled the offering which allows Jio users to get up to 100 GB of free cloud storage space. Moving forward, RIL said that it is looking to offer a rich bouquet of AI services for consumers and enterprises on the back of gigawatt scale AI infrastructure in India. 

“… Rapid scale up of 5G adoption and proliferating fixed broadband beyond Tier I towns over the past year, further strengthens the Digital India mission. Jio will continue to lead the charge in technology innovation by fully embracing the power of AI to create a connected, intelligent future that is truly transformative. This will drive sustained value creation over the next many years,” Ambani said.

Earlier this month, Jio also launched its “5.5G” network, which will offer download speeds of up to 10 Gbps and upload speeds of up to 1 Gbps, developed in partnership with OnePlus.

Meanwhile, RIL said that the digital and new commerce business accounted for 18% of revenue of its retail arm Reliance Retail in Q3 FY25.

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Reliance Industries’ Jio has partnered with Sandeep Nailwal-led Polygon Labs to bring Web3 capabilities to some of its existing applications and services.

“Joining forces with Polygon Labs marks a significant milestone in Jio’s journey towards digital excellence. We are excited to explore the boundless possibilities of Web3 and bring unparalleled digital experiences to our users,” said Kiran Thomas, CEO at Jio Platforms.

Launched in 2017 by Sandeep Nailwal, Jaynti D Kanani and Anurag Arjun, Polygon intends to offer a comprehensive suite of solutions for developers and users to meet the requirements of Web3 and aims to become the AWS of the Web3 space.

Aishwary Gupta, global head of payment and fintech and ecosystem business development for India at Polygon Labs told Inc42, “The idea for us is to get people in India to leverage the blockchain technology on Polygon and add additional functionalities to the existing product suite of Jio to make it better and rewarding for the users.”

This development comes at a time when Jio Platforms has scaled up its digital play in the past year by launching a clutch of new offerings, including AI cloud services, 4G feature phones and Bluetooth tracker JioTag Go.

To note, earlier this week, telecom giant Reliance Jio also rolled out its 4G and 5G services at the Siachen glacier. 

Furthermore, there has been a growing interest in forging partnerships with blockchain and Web3 startups for the innovation of new tech advancements, where artificial intelligence is overtaken by generative AI and Web3 ecosystem.

A month ago, gaming giant Nazara Technologies and blockchain startup Lysto signed a letter of intent to launch ‘The Growth Protocol’, a blockchain-focused protocol for digital marketing and growth applications in the Web3 ecosystem.

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Telecom major Reliance Jio has rolled out its 4G and 5G services at the Siachen glacier. 

In a post on social media platform Facebook, the telecom operator said that it has installed a 5G base station at Siachen, which will enable 5G connectivity in the region. 

“We are proud to start the year with a historic milestone. In partnership with the Indian Army’s Fire and Fury Corps, Jio has installed a 5G base station at Siachen, the world’s highest battleground…,” Reliance Jio said. 

In a statement sent to news agency PTI, a company spokesperson said that Reliance Jio has become the first telecom operator in the country to deliver connectivity in the “harsh region”. The company also said that the services were rolled out by deploying a plug-and-play pre-configured equipment at a forward post. 

“This achievement was made possible in coordination with Army Signallers from planning to multiple training sessions, system pre-configuration and comprehensive testing. The Indian Army was pivotal in managing logistics, including airlifting Jio’s equipment to Siachen glacier,” the spokesperson said. 

The move will enable high-speed internet connectivity for Indian soldiers posted at 16,000 feet in the Karakoram range. The area, which is colloquially referred to as the world’s highest battleground, is characterised by extreme weather conditions, with temperatures plummeting to as much as -50 degrees Celsius.

This comes days after Reliance Jio announced the launch of its new “5.5G” network, which will offer download speeds of up to 10 Gbps and upload speeds of up to 1 Gbps. The new network boasts lower latency, faster downloads and stable performance in crowded environments by leveraging the component carrier aggregation (3CC) technology.

Jio Platforms, which houses the telecom operator, has scaled up its digital play in the past year by launching a clutch of new offerings, including AI cloud services, 4G feature phones and Bluetooth tracker JioTag Go.

On the financial front, Jio Platforms’ consolidated net profit rose 23.4% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 6,539 Cr in the second quarter (Q2) of the financial year 2024-25 (FY25). Operating revenue jumped 18% YoY to INR 31,709 Cr during the quarter. 

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Telecom giant Reliance Jio has reportedly announced the launch of its new “5.5G” network in India, which the company is touting as a “significant upgrade” over its existing 5G network. 

As per India TV, the new 5.5G network will offer download speeds of up to 10 Gbps and upload speeds of up to 1 Gbps. During the launch event, Jio demonstrated the new network’s capabilities and achieved speeds exceeding 1,014 Mbps. 

The new offering also boasts lower latency, faster downloads, higher-quality streaming for 4K videos and stable performance even in crowded environments. The company claims that lower latency will enable online gamers to have a smoother and more responsive gameplay. 

The telecom operator claims that the new network deploys the component carrier aggregation (3CC) technology, which enables devices to connect to multiple towers simultaneously. This ensures faster data transfer and better call quality, especially in areas with high network congestion.

Developed in partnership with smartphone maker OnePlus, the new 5.5G network will look to enhance mobile internet experiences, especially online gaming and video calls. OnePlus 13 series smartphones, namely OnePlus 13 and OnePlus 13R, will be the first devices to offer the new network. 

Notably, the telecom giant has introduced a new “5GA” icon, which will be displayed when devices are connected to the new 5.5G network. As per the report, the transition to the 5.5G network will be automatic and will not require any manual configuration by users.

It is pertinent to note that the 5.5G network is the next progression in the 5G technology, and offers higher speeds with lower latency and integrated intelligence. Telcos globally have already begun testing the new network and some telecom operators (such as Zain Kuwait and Bulgaria’s Vivacom) achieved speeds of up to 10 Gbps during successful trials. 

Back home, Bharti Airtel also inked a multi-year pact with original equipment manufacturer (OEM) Nokia in November last year to deploy 4G and 5G equipment, taking another step towards rolling out its 5G-Advanced network, alternatively called 5.5G.

Notably, the 5.5G network is an advanced version of 5G and has been developed under the 3GPP (protocol developer 3rd Generation Partnership Project) Release 18 standard. The new connectivity standard builds on previous iterations and offers higher data rates, broader coverage and improved uplink connectivity. 

The latest offering from Reliance Jio’s stable comes at a time when the parent conglomerate Reliance Industries has aggressively shored up its digital play in the past year. Last year, the oil-to-telecom major launched a clutch of new offerings, including quick commerce and AI cloud services. 

On the telecom front, Reliance Jio acquired additional spectrum worth INR 973 Cr and hiked its tariffs to increase its average revenue per user (ARPU) and improve customer mix. As a result, Jio Platforms, which houses the telecom operator, saw its ARPU jump 7.4% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 195.1 per month in the quarter ended September 2024. 

Meanwhile, Jio Platforms’ consolidated net profit rose 23.4% YoY to INR 6,539 Cr in the second quarter (Q2) of the financial year 2024-25 (FY25). Operating revenue also saw a healthy 18% YoY jump to INR 31,709 Cr in the quarter under review. 

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Drone manufacturing startup ideaForge has approved the allotment of 8,198 equity shares under its existing employee stock option plan (ESOP).

Based on the stock’s closing price yesterday (January 9), the newly allotted equity shares are worth INR 49.3 Lakh.

In an exchange filing today (January 10), the startup said that its board approved the allotment of 8,198 equity shares at a face value of INR 10 each to eligible employees upon exercise of vested options under the ideaForge Employees Stock Option Scheme, 2018.

After the fresh allotment, the issued and paid-up equity share capital of the drone maker has increased to INR 43.04 Cr from INR 43.03 Cr earlier.

Shares of ideaForge fell as low as 3.4% to INR 581 apiece during the intraday trading session on the BSE today. Its shares were trading 2.5% lower at INR 586.2 at 2.23 PM IST.

ideaForge shares are set to end in red for the third straight session if the losses hold.

Founded in 2007 by Ankit Mehta, Ashish Bhat, Rahul Singh, and Vipul Joshi, ideaForge makes unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems for inspection, surveillance and mapping. Its offerings span across sectors such as defence, construction, mining and agriculture.

The Mumbai-based company recently allotted 4,126 equity shares under the same ESOP plan in December 2024.

Prior to that, ideaForge also allotted 2,608 equity shares in November, 1,450 shares in October and 3,936 shares in September, respectively.

The drone manufacturer reported a consolidated net loss of INR 13.7 Cr in the quarter ending September 2024 (Q2) as against a net profit of INR 89.20 Lakh in the year ago period. 

Its operating revenue rose about 56.52% to INR 37.1 Cr during the quarter from INR 23.7 Cr in Q2 FY24.

This development comes at a time when numerous startups have been allotting ESOPs in the past few months to retain their employees, where companies like Paytm, Zomato and Delhivery have introduced multiple rounds of stock options.

Earlier this month, fintech giant Paytm allotted 1.48 Lakh equity shares to its eligible employees under its various ESOP schemes.

Meanwhile, Peak XV Partners-backed fintech unicorn Razorpay announced the allocation of ESOPs worth INR 1 Lakh to each of its current employees to mark its 10th anniversary, last month.

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Microsoft chairman and CEO Satya Nadella believes India must look to forge its own future when it comes to frontier technology such as AI and foundational models, leveraging its strengths in science R&D and its talent base. 

Speaking in a fireside chat with Jitin Prasada, Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), the Microsoft chief said that capital investment is a real entry barrier, but India has the opportunity to move beyond these restraints by focussing on scientific and mathematical breakthroughs that could change the dynamics of the AI industry. 

“I don’t think the last known big breakthrough in AI frontier has happened. I always say we are one mathematical breakthrough away from that entire edifice being thrown out and going after something else,” Satya Nadella said during his short visit to India, where the CEO also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as founders of prominent Indian startups. 

When asked whether the central government’s IndiaAI Mission should focus on building models for the Indian market using open source LLMs or build its own AI foundational model, Nadella added that there needs to be a balanced approach, which involves building on existing infrastructure and adding new models to the mix wherever the opportunity comes up. India-specific models can be integrated with global platforms to unlock new applications and services. 

Nadella added that India can set the example for the world when it comes to building within the capital constraints. “The real barrier to entry for large language models is the capital investment. You can spend a billion dollars, 10 billion, 100 billion and then a trillion. But India can define its mission as ‘we will do in a billion dollars what has taken $10 billion to build’.”

Doubling down on Microsoft’s strategy around building up AI products and capabilities in India, Nadella announced earlier this week that the company plans to invest $3 Bn towards this sector, Microsoft’s largest-ever investment in the country.

“India is rapidly becoming a leader in AI innovation, unlocking new opportunities across the country. The investments in infrastructure and skilling reaffirm our commitment to making India AI-first, and will help ensure people and organizations across the country benefit broadly,” Nadella added.

Microsoft is looking to scale up its data centre operations across India, setting up a fourth facility which will go live in 2026.  The company also aims to train 10 Mn people by 2030 with AI skills as part of an initiative launched last year.

Calling India the AI use-case capital of the world, Nadella said that the country is in a unique position to influence events since the combination of digital public infrastructure and private innovation can allow AI to be used at scale. 

“In India, AI isn’t just being talked about; it’s being applied—with rapid diffusion and impact. India is unique in combining digital public goods like India Stack with entrepreneurial energy, talent, and demographics,” the Microsoft CEO added.

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Microsoft is planning to invest $3 Bn (around INR 25,724 Cr) in India to expand its AI and cloud capabilities.This also marks the company’s largest-ever expansion in the country.

The investment was announced today (January 7) by Microsoft chairman and CEO Satya Nadella.

“India is rapidly becoming a leader in AI innovation, unlocking new opportunities across the country. The investments in infrastructure and skilling we are announcing today reaffirm our commitment to making India AI-first, and will help ensure people and organizations across the country benefit broadly,” he said.

The additional investment is set to scale up Microsoft’s data centre operations across India. With three data centre campuses in place, Microsoft is setting up a fourth one and it is expected to go live in 2026. 

The company also aims to train 10 Mn people by 2030 with AI skills as a part of its ADVANTA(I)GE INDIA initiative launched last year. The initiative is part of Microsoft’s global skills for social impact charter and the training under it will be delivered in partnership with the government, nonprofit and corporate organisations and communities.

Microsoft has also announced an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) with SaaS collective SaaSBoomi and over the next five years, both of them aim to impact over 5,000 startups and over 10,000 entrepreneurs, upskill more than 150,000 startup employees through focused workshops, foster regional development in more than 20 tier II cities, create over 200,000 new job opportunities, and help attract an additional $1.5 Bn in venture capital funding for the Indian AI and SaaS ecosystem. 

“Excited to build on our commitment to making India AI-first and work together on our continued expansion in the country to ensure every Indian benefits from this AI platform shift,” said Nadella in a post on X.

Yesterday (January 6), Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with Nadella, which focused on advancing India’s ambitions in technology, innovation, and AI.

Last year, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son also met PM Modi.

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Telecom operators Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea have reportedly signed a share purchase agreement with iBus Network and Infrastructure Pvt to transfer their entire stake in joint venture Firefly Networks Ltd. 

Both the telecom companies currently hold a 50% stake in Firefly Networks, which will be sold to iBus Network for a total cash consideration of INR 4.5 Cr each, as per exchange filings.

The deal is anticipated to close within 30 business days from the execution date of the agreement between the parties. Upon completion, Firefly Networks will cease to be a joint venture of Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea.

According to the filing, the transaction is not classified as a related-party transaction and remains subject to the fulfillment of closing conditions.

“The Company will receive INR 4.5 Cr for the sale of its entire stake (50%) held in Firefly,” Vodafone Idea said in a separate filing.

Firefly manages and monetises Wi-Fi hotspots, providing Wi-Fi infrastructure to partners such as educational institutions, hospitals, malls, cafes, public spaces, transit hubs, and corporate parks across major Indian cities.

Supported by investors such as the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund and the International Finance Corporation, iBus Network and Infrastructure focuses on delivering in-building telecom network solutions and Wi-Fi managed services.

Founded in 2013 by Ram Sellaratnam, Subash Vasudevan and Sunil Menon, iBUS builds digital infrastructure solutions and deploys cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity at IT parks, airports, hospitals, among others.

Its product portfolio includes iBus Talk (data connectivity inside buildings), iBus Find (consumer behaviour analyser), iBus Sync (broadband services) and iBus Sense (IoT-enabled communication platform).

Months ago, the startup raised INR 280 Cr (approximately $34 Mn) from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, to expand its presence in international markets.

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Continuing his streak of meeting global tech leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella on Monday (January 6). The meeting focused on advancing India’s ambitions in technology, innovation, and artificial intelligence (AI).

Nadella, who shared insights from the meeting on X, thanked the PM, writing, “…Excited to build on our commitment to making India AI-first and work together on our continued expansion in the country to ensure every Indian benefits from this AI platform shift.”  

Responding to Nadella, PM Modi said, “It was indeed a delight to meet you, @satyanadella! Glad to know about Microsoft’s ambitious expansion and investment plans in India. It was also wonderful discussing various aspects of tech, innovation, and AI in our meeting”.

This comes days after PM Modi met several key business leaders recently. On January 4, he met former Infosys CEO and entrepreneur Vishal Sikka to discuss AI-related topics. Last month, he also met Perplexity cofounder and CEO Aravind Srinivas. 

Last year, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son also met PM Modi. 

These high-profile meetings are happening at a time when the Indian government is pushing for the growth of AI startups in India. 

In 2024, the union cabinet approved INR 10,372 Cr IndiaAI Mission to foster the homegrown AI ecosystem, facilitate funding for emerging AI startups, and spur innovation in the sector.

In December last year, the Centre also opened the second round of bids for its IndiaAI Mission to establish a compute capacity of up to 10,000 graphic processing units (GPUs), develop AI applications for critical sectors, and tackle challenges identified by the government.

India is home to more than 200 GenAI startups and these startups raised more than $1.2 Bn in funding between 2020 and 2024. The homegrown GenAI market is projected to become a $17 Bn market opportunity by 2030.

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Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd has reportedly opposed the telecom regulator’s proposal to bring OTT content services under the authorisation of the Indian Telecommunications Act, 2023.

As per a Businessline report, in its counter-comments to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the company said that there is no basis for subjecting OTT content services to the authorisation requirements of the Indian Telecommunications Act, 2023.

Jio has now joined the list of Content Delivery Network (CDN) companies, including Netflix, Amazon, Universal Studios and Warner Bros, in opposing the telecom regulator’s proposal to regulate them.

Earlier these companies argued they are not telecom operators and, therefore, do not fall under the regulator’s jurisdiction.

Bharti Airtel Ltd and other stakeholders have previously advocated for OTT platforms delivering broadcast content via broadband or mobile to be brought under the authorisation framework, citing the principle of “same service, same rules.” 

However, in its counter-comments, Reliance Jio argued that this principle does not apply to OTT platforms.

While Jio’s original submission did not explicitly mention OTT services, the company has previously called for regulating OTT communication platforms but has not clarified how these differ from OTT content platforms. 

In its letter, Jio emphasised the distinction between OTT platforms and Distribution Platform Operators (DPOs), stating, “OTTs differ from other DPOs such as cable TV, IPTV, DTH etc., as these latter deliver broadcasting services through broadcasting networks established by them. Furthermore, the licensed DPOs transmit licensed TV channels after acquiring them from broadcasters under the provisions of Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines. Whereas OTT content providers deliver content through public internet.” 

The company further argued that the Information Technology Act, 2000 already govern OTT content services, and its associated Rules.

Other stakeholders like the Broadband India Forum (BIF) said, “TV and radio broadcasters follow a ‘push-model’ as they deliver contents to mass audiences/viewers at a predetermined schedule. OTT platforms make content available to subscribers over the public internet and operate on a pull model (i.e. subscribers choose and request for content they wish to watch from an online library made available by the OTT platforms).”

On the other hand, Airtel argued that any platform delivering content similar to that provided by regulated distribution platforms should be brought under an equivalent regulatory regime.

“OTT delivering broadcast content through broadband / mobile provide the same content as provided by DTH operators to subscribers with no commensurate obligations of any kind. This approach goes against the basic premise of TRAI’s endeavour to have a balanced regulatory framework. These anomalies lead to risks such as exclusionary and discriminatory impact for subscribers who may not be able to access the same broadcast content on their choice of delivery medium,” said Airtel, as reported by Businessline.

Particularly, Airtel asked that Prasar Bharti’s OTT platform services WAVES also be brought within the purview of the authorisation framework. 

The post Reliance Jio Opposes Move To Regulate OTT Content Services appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Fueling its expansion spree, geotech startup MapmyIndia has infused $4 Mn (around INR 33.8 Cr) to pick up 40% stake in its joint venture (JV) with Hyundai AutoEver, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hyundai Motor.

Under this transaction, MapmyIndia has acquired 65,708 common shares of the JV called PT Terra Link Technologies, the company said in a statement today (December 27).

The first announcement was made earlier this month (December 8) when the board of the company approved the incorporation of the proposed JV in Indonesia. Back then, the company said that it will own 40% in the JV, while the remaining 60% will be acquired by Hyundai AutoEver with an investment of $6 Mn.

This investment fuels the company’s plan of expanding its market globally.

Additionally, MapmyIndia has also picked up a 19.84% stake in location intelligence platform Kaiinos Geo Spatial Technologies Private Ltd via equity as well as compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS). 

The company has made a total investment of INR 2 Cr to acquire this stake. This acquisition aligns with MapmyIndia’s initiative to support innovative technologies and expand its tech stack.

This comes at a time when the board of MapmyIndia also approved the company’s proposal to invest an additional $0.5 Mn in its subsidiary CE International in one or more tranches. Besides, the company will also invest INR 3 Cr to acquire 9.37% stake in SaaS platform for automobiles SimDaaS Autonomy Private Ltd.

Last month, MapmyIndia’s chief executive officer and executive director Rohan Verma resigned from his position to form a new B2C business. It is pertinent to note that the board of MapmyIndia approved to make an initial investment of INR 10 Lakh to acquire a 10% stake, while also planning to make a further investment of INR 35 Cr in his new business.

Earlier this year, MapmyIndia was in discussions with partners to expand its products and platforms beyond India, targeting regions in Southeast Asia and the Middle East & North Africa.

The company posted a 8% decline in its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to INR 30.35 Cr in the second quarter of FY25 from INR 33.09 Cr in the year-ago period. Meanwhile, its revenue from operations rose 14% to INR 103.67 Cr in the quarter under review, against  INR 91.08 Cr in Q2 FY24.

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For Reliance, there were two halves to 2024. Pretty much most of the first half of the year was getting the Reliance Jio revenue machine going, followed by a big push for artificial intelligence.

In many ways, this was Reliance looking at what it needs to do now, and what it needs to do for the future. Of course, given that this is Reliance — with Reliance Retail, Reliance Jio Platforms and now Jio Financial Services — there’s always a lot more bubbling under the surface than what dominates headlines.

Nevertheless, as usual, it’s been a year where Reliance continued to press forward towards the transformation from an oil conglomerate to a modern day tech giant. As we review the year gone by for unicorns and listed giants, it would also be pertinent to see where Reliance, Reliance Jio are heading.

For one, we have noted time and again in the past 18 months — Reliance is going from an enabler for startups to a big competitor. It has entered arenas that have huge competitive implications for startups, including a big push for fintech in 2024, and potentially a major salvo for quick commerce as the year drew to a close.

But with the AI push — the partnership with Nvidia and launch of AI products — the tech giant is positioning itself once again as an enabler of the AI revolution. What consequences will this have on the Indian tech ecosystem in 2025 and beyond?

The Reliance Jio Story In 2024

In just over eight years, Reliance Jio has become the largest mobile network provider in the world, outside China. And while this was always on the cards, in 2024, the telco decided to put its revenue machine into gear.

The most obvious step was the tariff hike in the first half of the year, which set Reliance on course to develop a revenue model for the 5G world. The consequence of this hike is plain to see in Reliance’s financials for the two quarters after April 2024.

Not only did the company report record revenues, its profitability also touched an all-time high in Q2 FY25 (as of September 2024). Reliance Jio’s quest for higher ARPU has clearly seen a big stride in Q2, even though Airtel is still comfortably ahead on this metric.

The tariff hike did lead to some churn, with Jio losing 12.74 Mn subscribers, but the record revenue would nevertheless be sweet music to Reliance Jio Platforms chairman Akash Ambani.

In June 2024, Reliance Jio fortified its telecom capabilities by acquiring spectrum worth INR 973.63 Cr in the 1800 MHz band. This included 5.0 MHz in Bihar for INR 420.25 Cr and 9.4 MHz in West Bengal for INR 553.38 Cr. With this, Jio’s spectrum footprint expanded to a colossal 26,801 MHz, further solidifying its leadership in the Indian telecom market.

This obviously puts a lot of onus on Reliance Jio to recover the funds. Already, the company has had to spend on 5G infrastructure which it will look to recover over the next few years through enterprise and consumer adoption, but revenue cannot be ignored in the short term.

Especially, if Reliance Jio’s IPO plans are actually close to reality.

In July 2024, a Jefferies research report said that Reliance Jio Infocomm could be headed for a possible public listing in 2025, either via an IPO or a spin-off, similar to Jio Financial Services. The brokerage estimated that Jio could list at a $112 Bn valuation, easily the largest such listing in India if it does happen, several times larger than the Hyundai Motor India listing which listed at close to $20 Bn.

Reliance Enters AI Era

By the time Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani and Nvidia chief Jensen Huang took to the stage in October 2024, AI was already a part of Reliance’s roadmap. The company had partnered with IIT-Bombay last year to develop large language models for the Indian market.

But joining hands with Nvidia for the AI infrastructure project in India is a big signal of where Reliance sees itself in the AI world. During his fireside chat with Mukesh Ambani at the inaugural Nvidia AI Summit in India, Huang said, “In order to lead artificial intelligence, you need to have AI model technology, massive quantity data and AI infrastructure. We’re announcing that Reliance and NVIDIA are partnering to build AI infrastructure here in India.”

“Now you have the fundamental ingredients – AI, data and AI infrastructure and you have a large population of users that creates AI flywheel,” he added.

And this brings us to where Reliance’s AI push could eventually lead the Indian tech industry. If indeed, AI is the new internet, could ‘Reliance AI’ become the new Reliance Jio?

While Jio was the pipeline through which Reliance managed to fuel its digital empire and new commerce businesses, AI could unlock a whole lot more — not only in terms of data, but a bigger chunk of the entire technology value chain.

So far Reliance’s push into cloud computing has not led to major success against global cloud majors, but AI could be the catalyst to change this.

Admittedly, like every other tech company, Reliance has had to target consumers too with AI. It launched Jio Phone Call AI for real-time call transcriptions as well as Jio AI Cloud services with 100 GB of storage for consumers; and unveiled Jio Brain (machine-learning-as-a-service), which is its big push towards enterprise AI and agentic models in the future.

In 2025, besides the potential IPO for Reliance Jio, watch out for Reliance unveiling more fleshed-out AI products, and perhaps even launching its own LLM to take on OpenAI, Google, Meta and Anthropic.

Sridhar Tonse Pai, founder and CEO of Tonse Telecom, believes that with its AI and 5G initiatives, Reliance Jio is going from a disruptor and challenger to a powerful defender of its territory. “With access to capital and a vision to dominate, it gets its way through and manages partnerships with other global leaders with ease. This has been repeatedly proven to be true,” Pai added.

Elaborating on the Reliance Jio advantage in digital infrastructure, Pai said that this year, Jio also added satellite internet services, besides owning submarine and subterranean infrastructure as well as surface infra and the spectrum. On the fixed and hybrid lines, it also owns fibre optic broadband. “Reliance Jio will now have infra at all layers and the content that everyone consumes. Making this first-level capability and offerings complete,” added Pai.

Fintech And OTT: The Next Frontiers

Within those layers, financial services is a big play for Reliance. Reliance’s AI plans have deep implications for Jio Financial Services, which saw an official launch in 2024.

And like Pai pointed out there’s also the matter of the new entertainment giant that emerged from the merger of Reliance Industries, Viacom18 and the Walt Disney Company (Disney+ Hotstar).

These represent the twin engines that Reliance is using to create a wall garden of services of products.

Throughout the past year, we have noted that JFS is a threat to fintech startups. Jio Financial Services is coming for every fintech startup — from banking to payments to digital lending to insurance to investment and even an AMC. And by virtue of being the most capitalised fintech company in India (roughly $25 Bn), it’s coming into the arena with a huge advantage.

It signed a JV deal with Blackrock for an AMC, wealth management and private credit businesses. On the payments side, for merchants, JFS launched sound boxes and made a big acquisition push for UPI through the Jio Finance app.

Here, Jio Finance will have to fight off Paytm, PhonePe, Google Pay, Flipkart, BharatPe, CRED, Pine Labs and others that have scaled up their PoS and UPI payments businesses.

In an analyst call in April 2024, JFS managing director and CEO Hitesh Kumar Sethia said India’s newest fintech giant has three major advantages: “Number 1, the Jio brand; number 2, capital; and number 3, customer adjacency from our ecosystem,” he said.

Finally, Reliance ended the year with the completion of the $8.5 Bn merger of Jio Cinema, Viacom18, and Disney+ Hotstar.

This deal created India’s largest entertainment entity, boasting 120 TV channels and two of the largest streaming services in the country. The merged entity promises to redefine the content landscape in India, and already there’s a lot of pressure on global competition such as Netflix and Amazon Prime.

More details about the combined platform will be revealed in 2025, and is likely to come in the first half of the year, before the next season of the Indian Premier League, which is typically a peak viewership event for JioCinema.

Reliance Jio In 2025: What’s In Store?

Analysts believe this merger could position Jio as a formidable player not just in telecom but in the global entertainment market. These investments mean that the Reliance empire has had to make some sacrifices and cost-cutting.

For the first time, Reliance Jio reduced its workforce by over 5,000 employees in FY24, bringing the headcount to approximately 90,067. Though the company did not specify reasons, industry experts speculated this move was part of broader cost-optimisation efforts.

Amitabh Srivastava, cofounder and MD of Voyage Ahead Solutions estimates that besides raising debt and solidifying its IPO plans, Jio will likely prioritise plans to retain consumers, network expansion and upgrades, and expansion into underserved areas in 2025. Most importantly, it will focus on data monetisation beyond just subscriber numbers, which is where the AI plans come into play.

Seconding this, Tonse Telecom’s Pai added that Jio would now be equipped to offer next level gaming with generative AI capabilities, AI-as-a-service and other AI centric solutions for consumers and enterprises.

The company is also expected to launch affordable devices for the AI age and might also enter the Extended Reality and gaming hardware space. And, on the infra side, expanding AI data centre capabilities will be a key focus. Reliance’s ability to navigate the AI world, and capitalise on its existing strengths like Jio 5G, the Disney merger will form a large part of the narrative in 2025.

The post Reliance Jio In 2024: Reliance Enters The AI Revolution appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Online classified company Info Edge’s subsidiary Redstart Labs is set to acquire additional stake in Brainsight Technology for a cash consideration of INR 3 Cr (around $353K), taking its shareholding in the Bengaluru-based healthcare startup to 5.27% from 4.68% earlier.

In an exchange filing, the Sanjeev Bikhchandani-led company said that Redstart has received approval from its board to acquire 385 compulsorily convertible preference shares of Brainsight.

Founded in 2019 by Laina Emmanuel and Rimjhim Agrawal, Brainsight offers AI based solutions for functional brain mapping. Currently, it offers two products — Voxelbox and Snowdrop. 

While Voxelbox gives clinicians access to fMRI processing engine and machine learning models for generating reports, Snowdrop is a patient care app.

As per the filing, Brainsight incurred a loss of INR 4.76 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) with the startup valued at INR 3.74 Cr.

Info Edge has been on an investment spree lately. Last month, the internet company said it planned to invest INR 4 Cr in its portfolio company LegitQuest via its wholly owned subsidiary Startup Investments (Holdings) Ltd. 

Prior to that, in October, Info Edge announced its committee of executive directors greenlit the company’s proposal to invest INR 30 Cr in Redstart Labs.

Founded in 1995 by Bikhchandani, Info Edge is one of India’s oldest internet-based companies, which operates across sectors such as recruitment (Naukri), real estate (99acres), matrimony (Jeevansathi) and education (Shiksha).

It counts listed giants such as foodtech major Zomato, insurtech startup PB Fintech, and unlisted edtech company Adda247 among its portfolio companies. 

Info Edge reported a 64.6% decline in its net profit to INR 84.73 Cr in the September quarter of the financial year 2024-25 (Q2 FY25) from INR 239.74 Cr in the same quarter last year.

However, operating revenue revenue increased nearly 12% to INR 700.82 Cr during the quarter under review, compared to INR 625.84 Cr in the year-ago period.

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Info Edge’s subsidiary Redstart Labs is investing another INR 3 Cr in Sploot to increase its stake in the pet care startup to 26.40%. 

In an exchange filing, the company said that Redstart Labs would acquire 1,051 Seed-2 Series compulsory convertible preference shares of Sploot. 

“This is to inform you that Redstart Labs (India) Ltd. (“Redstart”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company has agreed to invest an amount of about INR 3 Cr in Sploot Private Limited (“Sploot”) and consequently the company’s aggregate shareholding through Redstart would increase from 21.96% to 26.40% on a fully converted and diluted basis upon completion of the acquisition of shares,” the filing said.

The transaction is expected to be completed within 30 days from the approval of the board of Redstart.

Founded in 2019 by Arnav Sahni and Garima Kaushal, Sploot is a pet care startup that operates an app for pet health, behaviour and nutrition. It helps pet parents book services such as dog walking and dog grooming. It also sells pet food under its brand name.  

As per the filing, Sploot has a net worth of INR 3.15 Cr. It posted a loss of INR 5.42 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) on an operating revenue of INR 1.79 Cr. 

Info Edge is among the most active investors in the Indian startup ecosystem. It counts the likes of Zomato and Policybazaar in its portfolio.

In October this year, Info Edge’s board approved an investment of INR 30 Cr (around $3.5 Mn ) in Redstart.

Incorporated in 2020, Redstart is engaged in the business of direct or indirect investments in tech companies and providing all types of internet services, development of software, consultancy, technical support for consumer companies, internet or SaaS providers, and any other services in the area of information technology and product development.

Info Edge’s net profit declined 64.6% to INR 84.73 Cr in the September quarter of the financial year 2024-25 (Q2 FY25) from INR 239.74 Cr in the same quarter last year. Revenue from operations increased 12% to INR 700.82 Cr during the quarter under review from INR 625.84 Cr in the year-ago period.

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Drone manufacturing startup ideaForge has allotted an additional 4,126 equity shares under its existing employee stock option plan (ESOP).

In an exchange filing today (December 16), the company said that its board approved the allotment of 4,126 equity shares at a face value INR 10 each to eligible employees upon exercise of vested options under the ideaForge Employees Stock Option Scheme, 2018.

“These shares shall rank pari-passu with the existing equity shares of the company in all respects,” the filing added.

With the fresh allotment, the issued and paid-up equity share capital of the Mumbai-based company has increased to INR 43,03,70,200 Cr from INR 43,03,28,940 Cr earlier.

Shares of ideaForge ended 0.51% lower at INR 640.55 apiece on the BSE today. As per the stock’s last closing price, the newly-allotted equity shares are worth INR 26.42 Lakh.

The dronetech startup initially allotted 38,946 equity shares for the exercise of vested stock options under its employee stock option plan (ESOP) 2018, in August. 

Following which, the company allotted 2,608 equity shares in November, 1,450 shares in October and 3,936 shares in September, respectively.

ideaForge’s stock closed marginally up at INR 640.55 per share on the BSE during intraday trading session today (December 16).

Founded in 2007 by Ankit Mehta, Ashish Bhat, Rahul Singh, and Vipul Joshi, ideaForge makes unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems for inspection, surveillance and mapping. Its offerings span across sectors such as defence, construction, mining and agriculture.

A month ago, the drone manufacturer reported a consolidated net loss of INR 13.7 Cr in the quarter ending September 2024 (Q2) as against a net profit of INR 89.20 Lakh in the year ago period. 

However, its operating revenue rose about 56.52% to INR 37.1 Cr during the quarter under review from INR 23.7 Cr in Q2 FY24.

This development comes at a time when numerous startups have competitively been allotting ESOPs throughout this year to retain their employees, where companies like Paytm, Zomato and Delhivery have introduced multiple rounds of stock options.

For instance, a week ago, logistics unicorn Shiprocket expanded its employee stock option plan (ESOP) by adding 31,011 stock options under its ESOP Plan 2016, and logistics major Delhivery approved the allotment of 7.8 Lakh equity shares for the exercise of vested options under its employee stock option plan (ESOP).

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IT giant Infosys is investing INR 8.3 Cr (nearly $1 Mn) to acquire a minority stake in healthtech startup 4baseCare. 

Infosys, in an exchange filing, said that the transaction will be executed via its venture capital arm, Infosys Innovation Fund. In lieu of the investment, the Fund will acquire an undisclosed number of Series A compulsory convertible preference shares (CCPS) of the startup. 

“Infosys Innovation Fund seeks to partner with AI and deeptech startups such as 4baseCare to complement its capabilities and jointly co-create next-generation solutions bringing the power of innovation to help Infosys’ clients navigate their business transformation,” Infosys said in the filing.

This comes barely four months after 4baseCare raised $6 Mn in its Series A funding round led by Yali Capital. 

Founded in 2018 by Hitesh Goswami and Kshitij Rishi, 4baseCare leverages advanced genomics and next-generation digital health technologies to develop personalised oncology (cancer-related) care for patients. The startup claims to have developed a unique set of comprehensive genomic panels which allows oncologists to choose the optimal targeted therapy for their patients.

In 2021, 4baseCare raised $2 Mn in its Pre-Series A round. 

The fundraise comes at a time when the Indian healthtech startup ecosystem continues to gain ground and momentum as investors bet on new innovations to solve healthcare issues. 

In September, Delhi NCR-based Redcliffe Labs raised $42 Mn in its Series C funding round led by the Danish Investment Fund for Developing Countries (IFU).

In July, B2B healthtech platform Watch Your Health marked the final close of its Series A round at $5 Mn after raising capital from Cornerstone Ventures from India and Conquest Global from Singapore.

However, it is pertinent to mention that the sector has been a laggard in the overall Indian startup ecosystem, having managed to raise a mere $7 Bn between 2014 and the first half (H1) of 2024 across 886 deals. 

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After investors opposed MapmyIndia’s plan to hive off its B2C business, the geotech company has reversed its decision and decided not to make any equity or debt investment in the new entity, which was to be led by its outgoing CEO Rohan Verma. 

Besides, the company will retain its B2C brand Mappls. 

In an exchange filing on Monday (December 9), MapmyIndia said that its board has reversed its decision and will continue to “explore and evaluate” its B2C play by recalibrating its investment in the segment. 

“We believe that the decisions taken by the board on November 29, 2024 and today, December 9, 2024 both are taken in the best interest of the company and all its shareholders including minority shareholders. The company and the board believes it is important to ensure that the company goes above and beyond to allay any apprehensions,” MapmyIndia CMD Rakesh Verma and CEO & executive director Rohan Verma said in a joint statement. 

On November 29, MapmyIndia said that CEO Rohan Verma would be departing to start a new venture but will continue to be a non-executive director on the board of the company. MapmyIndia was to acquire a 10% stake in the new entity for an investment of INR 10 Lakh. Besides, it was also supposed to subscribe to compulsorily converted debentures (CCDs) worth INR 35 Cr of the new company. 

However, investors weren’t pleased with the company’s decisions. During an investor call on December 3, analysts and investors raised a number of questions about the transaction. 

• The spin-off of Mappls and its long-term impact on MapmyIndia’s financial health were the key concerns for the investors.
• Besides, they also question the diversion of capital and its potential impact on the company’s operational efficiency.
• The fairness of the terms of the deal and potential conflict of interest arising from Rohan’s continued presence on the board were also flagged. 

With the reversal, MapmyIndia said that it will retain the retail brand, Mappls, and the associated apps moving forward. “We remain on track to achieve our stated goals as articulated in our Investor Day in June, 2023,” it added

However, it is not clear if Rohan will continue in his role as the CEO of MapmyIndia. Inc42 has reached out to him to get more details and the story will be updated on receiving a response.

Meanwhile, shares of MapmyIndia surged to an intraday high of INR 1,945 after the company announced its decision today. This was an increase of over 18% from the previous close price of INR 1,646.60. 

It is pertinent to mention that the company’s shares fell to a 52-week low of INR 1,514.70 last week. The stock fell 5.89% last week. 

Shares of MapmyIndia ended today’s trading session 15.99% higher at INR 1,909.95.

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Share price of geotech company MapmyIndia’s parent CE Info Systems plunged to a new 52-week low of INR 1,535 during the intraday trading on Tuesday (December 3), marking an about 12.5% decline from its closing price of INR 1,753.80 on Friday (November 29). The company’s market capitalisation fell to INR 8,370.79 Cr (about $988.34 Mn) at the end of Tuesday’s trading session. 

Behind this fall in stock price was a series of events, beginning Friday. The company informed the bourses on Friday, after market hours, that its CEO and executive director Rohan Verma will be parting ways from the executive duties to fully focus on building a B2C business as a “a dedicated separate” company. 

CEO Verma will be transitioning from CE Info Systems to take up an executive position in the new company from April 1, 2025. However, he will remain a non-executive director on the board of the geotech company. Moving forth, MapmyIndia said that its CMD Rakesh Kumar Verma will continue to provide leadership to the company. 

In a subsequent press release issued on December 1, MapmyIndia, without exactly saying it, made it clear that it will hive off its B2C business after the incorporation of the new startup. In the press release titled, “MapmyIndia to continue focusing on its core B2B and B2B2C businesses”, the company said that the new venture will use MapmyIndia’s consumer facing map product Mappls. However, MapmyIndia will continue to have access to Mappls for its B2B2C and B2G2C offering.

The new company will operate as an independent entity and bear all expenses related to its business, be it people cost, marketing cost or cloud cost. 

MapmyIndia will acquire a 10% stake in the new entity with an investment of INR 10 Lakh. Further, it will also be subscribing to INR 35 Cr worth of compulsorily convertible debentures (CCDs) of the new company, which will convert to equity either after 10 years or at a 25% discount to any third party valuation of the new company, whichever is earlier. “The future capital requirement will be taken up by the MapmyIndia board at appropriate time,” it said.

MapMyIndia’s departing CEO Rohan Verma will hold the remaining 90% stake in the new venture. 

Investors Cry Foul Over The Hive Off

MapmyIndia held an investor meeting on Monday (December 2) to discuss the latest developments. However, it laid bare the dissatisfaction of investors and analysts with the company’s decisions, with one of the investors going as far as saying that the terms of the separation agreement aren’t fair to MapmyIndia’s minority stakeholders. 

During the call, the CMD said that MapmyIndia consulted many “serious investors, not retail traders” before taking the decision. “All of them said that the company’s quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) performance is what ultimately matters,” he added.

When asked if the move would actually translate to a better financial performance on a QoQ level, he refrained from making a direct comment on the impact on the company’s immediate future. Instead, he said that the company has been facing investor scrutiny over its weak financial performance in the last quarter. 

In the quarter ending September 2024 (Q2 FY25), MapmyIndia’s profit after tax (PAT) declined 15% on a sequential basis to INR 33.09 Cr from INR 35.86 Cr. In Q1 FY25, the decline in PAT was about 6% QoQ.

Explaining the rationale behind the decision to hive off the B2C business after two consecutive quarters of less-than-satisfactory performances, the departing CEO said that MapmyIndia is a B2B company at its core and it lacks the DNA of a B2C business. Thus, while the company spent a significant amount on incubating its B2C arm, it made a dent in its bottom line.

In its investor presentation for Q2 FY25, MapmyIndia said, “Marketing expenses went up by an incremental INR 2.3 Cr and cloud infrastructure costs increased by INR 1.3 Cr QoQ to support consumer brand Mappls reach, resulting in increased downloads to 25 Mn+ Mappls app users at the end of Q2 FY25.”

During the call, the company’s management said that the increase in its marketing expenses was solely to support the growth of the consumer facing business.  

However, proxy advisory firm InGovern Research Services pointed out that MapmyIndia would still invest in the separate new B2C venture while focusing on its core B2B and B2B2C operations. “The potential diversion of capital towards the new venture may impact the company’s operational efficiency and profitability in its primary business areas,” it said.

Further, InGovern also pointed out the significant investment that MapmyIndia would be making in the new entity through CCDs. It questioned the company’s financial risk management plans in case the new entity failed to perform.

Later on Tuesday, MapmyIndia apparently decided to not subscribe to the CCDs. “MapmyIndia’s board approved investment of INR 35 Cr through CCDs… but after hearing the concerns of minority investors, I have decided not to take the investment, and I’ll use my own funds to run this venture,” Rohan Verma told ET.

However, MapmyIndia had not informed the bourses about the development till the time of publishing this story. 

What About Royalties?

The new entity will also inherit Mappls Mall and Travel, which MapmyIndia said is in the incubation stage, and Mappls Gadgets for consumers, marketed through D2C or ecommerce channels. 

The company’s Mappls app, which provides maps, real-time updates with ETA, voice navigation, safety alerts for disturbances like speed breakers, potholes, accident prone areas and 3D photo realistic viewability option, has seen over 10 Mn downloads on the Google Playstore. 

In its investor presentation for Q2 FY25, MapmyIndia said that Mappls became the “No. 1 on App Store in India across all categories” in FY24.

The separation of Mappls into a different entity is perhaps the biggest concern that investors have. During an over hour-long investor call, the primary question that was repeatedly asked to MapmyIndia’s management was the impact the separation would have on the company. 

The company’s management said that the ownership of Mappls will be with the new entity. Hence, while the new company will earn its revenue from Mappls’ products, CE Infosystem will only have access to anonymised data collected by it.   

This irked many investors and analysts who sought to know the reasoning behind this move. Addressing the concerns, Rakesh Verma said that Mappls as a brand itself is not the consumer business of the company today. The app is free to use and will continue to be free in the near foreseeable future, he asserted.

“MapmyIndia has created 25 Mn downloads for Mappls as of today. It is going to them, but MapmyIndia is keeping the full brand usage for five years. I can’t answer what will happen after five years,” he said. 

The outgoing CEO justified the separation by saying that the purpose of Mappls was to showcase and complement MapmyIndia’s core business. Hence, when it is spread out to more customers, it is likely to translate in more revenue for MapmyIndia as the brand gets to showcase its tech to a greater audience. 

He said that this showcase as well as the extra data MapmyIndia will get can actually be seen as the “royalty” for it.

Related Party Transaction Raises Eyebrows

Some investors and a number of people on the internet posed questions on the related party transaction (RPT) and the terms of the deal. 

In a post on X, portfolio management service provider Capitalmind’s CEO Deepak Shenoy said, “Regardless of who’s putting in money to fund a “B2C” business, it’s not good corporate governance to offer a brand, past goodwill and potential future growth of a consumer business to a related party, while taking only 10% stake.”

In its report, InGovern marked the RPT as the biggest red flag. It said that Rohan Verma’s continued presence on the board could influence decisions related to the new B2C entity. It added that his dual role could blur the “lines of governance and accountability” at MapmyIndia.

However, MapmyIndia, in its statement, said that the RTP was considered “carefully” by the board and it is as per the compliance requirement. 

“MapmyIndia founders (Rakesh Verma and Rashmi Verma) will have no part in the new entity. They will be completely focused on building MapmyIndia and have no other interests beyond MapmyIndia and will continue guiding the company towards new growth trajectories without any distractions. While Rohan can concentrate his energies on building the B2C business,” it said. 

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Shares of MapmyIndia nosedived over 4% to INR 1,681.30 apiece on the BSE in early trading hours today (December 2) after the digital mapping company’s board decided to demerge its B2C business into an independent entity to focus solely on its core B2B and B2B2C businesses.

In an exchange filing, the geotech company said that its B2C business will now be undertaken by cofounder Rakesh Verma, who is set to step down from his role of CEO effective March 31, 2025.

Explaining the rationale behind the complete pivot to B2B and B2B2C, MapmyIndia said the consumer business is cash-intensive, one that “requires a dedicated focus to build”. The segregation, the company said, would allow it to focus on new growth opportunities without any distractions.

The digital mapping company plans to invest INR 10 Lakh to acquire a 10% stake in the new B2C venture floated by Verma at an initial stage. Further, it would infuse another INR 35 Cr in the form of compulsorily convertible debentures (CCDs).

“The CCD will convert to equity either after 10 years or at a 25% discount to any 3rd party valuation of the new company whichever is earlier,” the filing read.

Additionally, the company’s board has also approved an investment of INR 3 Cr to acquire 9.37% stake in SaaS platform for automobiles SimDaaS Autonomy Private Ltd, and an investment of INR 2 Cr to acquire 19.84% stake in location intelligence platform Kaiinos Geo Spatial Technologies Private Ltd.

Following the demerger announcement, brokerage JM Financial slashed its target price for MapmyIndia to INR 2,810 from INR 3,060 earlier while maintaining a ‘Buy’ call on the stock. This would imply an upside potential of more than 60% from the stock’s previous close.

“MapMyIndia’s investments in the B2C segment (Mappls) was impacting margins, while diverting capital from B2B initiatives – IoT-led and Drone businesses. Hiving off B2C efforts  should  therefore  help  the  company  sharpen  its  focus  on  B2B/B2B2C  segments. The  new  entity  could  explore  external  fund  raise,  limiting investment  requirements from the parent. This should improve MapMyIndia’s margin/ROCE profile,” the brokerage said.

The plans to segregate its B2C business come at a time when MapmyIndia is looking to  expand into newer markets, including South East Asia, North Africa and the Middle East.

The company posted a 8% year-on-year (YoY) and 15% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) decline in its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to INR 30.35 Cr in Q2 FY25. Operating revenue grew 14% YoY and 2% QoQ to INR 103.67 Cr during the quarter.

The post MapmyIndia Shares Tumble 4% After Board Approves Demerger Of B2C Business appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Internet giant Info Edge’s complaint against Rahul Yadav over alleged fraud at Broker Network has been lodged as a first information report (FIR) by the Mumbai Police.

Yadav, the founder of Info Edge-backed 4B Networks which ran Broker Network, and others have been accused of fraudulent activities pertaining to the misuse of the funds. Yadav was formerly the cofounder of Housing.com.

“An FIR has been registered by the Bandra Police Station (Mumbai Police) on November 29, 2024 against Yadav, Devesh Singh, Pratik Choudhary, Sanjay Saini (and unnamed others) in connection with 4B Networks (an indirect subsidiary of the company), alleging inter alia commitment of certain fraudulent acts involving 4B Networks’ funds,” Info Edge said in an exchange filing on Saturday (November 30).

However, Info Edge has claimed that the FIR will not impact its business operations. The Sanjeev Bikhchandani-led company holds a 65% stake in the company.

Info Edge Vs Rahul Yadav & Broker Network

After the Housing.com fiasco and trying to start another startup after that, Rahul Yadav launched Broker Network in 2020, and despite his chequered history in running large companies, he managed to raise funds from Info Edge in 2021.

Starting from December 2021, Info Edge invested close to INR 280 Cr in Broker Network and acquired a majority stake in the company. However, the company’s operational challenges and allegations of misuse of funds began making the rounds among employees and broker groups in mid 2022. In August 2022, Yadav and Broker Network returned to Info Edge for more funds, but this time around there were questions from the investor about the operational challenges and lack of revenue growth.

For instance, Broker Network’s peak employee count was close to 2,300 in July 2022, but it then suddenly dropped to under 1,600 in a month. Inc42’s original investigation into Rahul Yadav and Broker Network also revealed a tangle of corporate entities that were seemingly receiving funds from Yadav, even as Broker Network bled cash.

After writing off the Broker Network investment in December 2022, Info Edge initiated arbitration proceedings against Yadav and 4B Networks in July 2023. The company is alleged to have failed to provide financial information requested by Info Edge.

The investor appointed Deloitte as the forensic auditor to look into the affairs of 4B Network. 

Following this in October last year, Info Edge filed a complaint with the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police, which has now been registered as an FIR after the initial investigation by the agency.

Rahul Yadav’s Other EOW Case

Besides Yadav, the EOW complaint named 4B Networks Private Limited, and Chaudhary as well as Singh, Yadav’s wife Karishma Khokhar, and RY Advisory LLP, the partnership firm which was set up by the Broker Network founder.

In a separate case a Rajasthan-based vendor associated with Broker Network also filed an FIR against Rahul Yadav for alleged fraud and criminal breach of trust with the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police.

The FIR filed by Vikas Nowal, country head and cofounder of Interspace Communications, an advertising agency that was empanelled by Broker Network, alleged that the company has defrauded Interspace, which is owed INR 10 Cr by Broker Network  for the activity undertaken in 2022. The FIR claims that a total of 83 ad hoardings were installed by Interspace in Pune from April to August 2022.

Following this a lookout circular (LOC) was issued by the police against Yadav and his bank accounts were said to have been frozen, according to sources in the investigating agency.

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