China's Alibaba Group sold a 3.1% stake in Indian digital payments firm Paytm for a total of $125 million through a block deal, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Shares of the company fell as much as 8.8% to Rs 528 in afternoon trading, and was last down 5.8% as of 3:00 pm IST. Alibaba, which held a 6.26% stake in Paytm as of end-September, sold the stake at Rs 536.95 apiece, the source, who did not want to be named because he is not authorised to speak to media, said. Morgan Stanley advised Alibaba on the deal, the source added. Alibaba and Morgan Stanley did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. Paytm's stock has risen about 9% this year up to last close, after reporting strong preliminary figures for the third quarter. It closed 2022 with a 60% loss, despite the company announcing a share buyback in December. Read Also Paytm CEO says there will be no more cash burn SoftBank to sell … [Read more...] about paytm: Alibaba sells Paytm stake worth $125 million via block deal
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Data Centres India: Data centre companies call for reciprocity in data flow
Illustration by Rahul Awasthi Technology infrastructure companies that are building digital storage facilities or data centres in India are petitioning the government to mandate local storage of user data as well as “reciprocity” in cross-border data flows, industry executives told ET. STT Global Data Centre and Yotta Infrastructure claimed that ancillary industries such as power, real estate and renewable energy, which are reliant on the growth of the data centre industry, will also be adversely impacted by free cross-border data flow. In their submissions, these companies asked for Indian users’ data to be transferred only to countries that allow their citizens’ data to be sent to India. And, that a copy of data stored overseas be also kept in India. “Reciprocity of data should be allowed,” Darshan Hiranandani, chairman of Yotta Infrastructure, told ET. STT Global Data Centre — the largest data centre chain in India with 33% market share — also … [Read more...] about Data Centres India: Data centre companies call for reciprocity in data flow
Startup20 Engagement Group holds inception meeting in Hyderabad
The Startup20 Engagement Group, initiated under India's G20 Presidency in 2023, held its inception meeting in Hyderabad . The second day of the two-day inception meeting on Sunday was addressed by Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma , YourStory founder and CEO Shradha Sharma, and actor and active investor in the Indian startup ecosystem Suniel Shetty . The three addresses focused on personal stories and their journey through the startup ecosystem in India. The Startup20 Engagement Group aims to create a global narrative for supporting startups and enabling synergies between startups, corporates, investors, innovation agencies, and other key ecosystem stakeholders. Read Also Govt expects 5-7 countries to sign up for adopting India tech stack by March Google Search now allows US car dealerships to show vehicle inventory The engagement group comprises three taskforces - Foundation & Alliance , Finance , and Inclusion … [Read more...] about Startup20 Engagement Group holds inception meeting in Hyderabad
Union Budget 2023: Voices from the startup industry
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced several measures to boost the satrtup industry in the country. In her budget speech , she proposed the extension of the date of incorporation for income tax benefits to start-ups from March 2024. “Entrepreneurship is vital for a country’s economic development. We have taken a number of measures for start-ups and they have borne results. India is now the third largest ecosystem for start-ups globally, and ranks second in innovation quality among middle-income countries,” said Sitharaman. In the Budget 2022-23, the government had allocated Rs 283.5 crore for the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme, which is higher than the Revised Estimates of about Rs 100 crore in the previous budget. The startup industry has welcomed the budget. Here are what CXOs of some popular startups have to say Anirban Mukherjee, CEO, PayU India “Budget 2023 is a great step towards supporting the long-term growth potential of India's fintech ecosystem … [Read more...] about Union Budget 2023: Voices from the startup industry