Business News at 05:30 pm on 19th February, 2024

Let’s begin…Shares of One97 Communication hit the 5% upper circuit to halt trading at Rs 358.35 after the company’s deadline for wallet deposits and credit transactions was extended to March 15 by the Reserve Bank of India. Also, the company has partnered with Axis Bank to settle the merchants’ payments by moving the nodal account to a newly opened escrow account with the bank. The company earlier had a nodal account with Paytm Payments Bank. Quote, Consumer payments for merchant transactions are typically collected in a dedicated account. This arrangement enables Paytm to seamlessly transition its merchants’ settlements to Axis Bank, thereby facilitating business operations for the merchants, unquote, the company said in the filing.

Next up…The BFSI sector has grown by leaps and bounds, transitioning India from a primarily cash-driven economy to one that is now highly digitised. Fintech, today, has entered the mainstream, focusing on increasing profitability and curtailing risk. The fintech ecosystem has witnessed tremendous technological advancements and is projected to grow sixfold. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to outpace the US and climb up the ranks to become the world’s leading fintech market by 2030. With such growth projections and the recent crackdown from the RBI on Paytm Payments Bank, fintech companies have become more watchful about compliance measures. Earlier, Rajeev Chandrasekhar also stated that the RBI’s regulatory action has drawn attention of fintech firms to importance of complying with laws.

Additionally…Arvind SmartSpaces Limited (ASL) on Monday announced that it has sold out the entire inventory released for sale in the 1st phase of its residential plotted development project, Arvind Orchards in Devanahalli, Bengaluru, within 7 hours of launch. It consisted of more than 220 units valued at over Rs 160 crore. The project is housed under HDFC Platform 2, it added. Arvind Orchards, is an orchard-themed plotted development nestled in Doddballapur Road, Devenahalli. This would be ASL’s second residential plotted township in Bengaluru. Devanahalli is an established residential plotting micro-market near Bengaluru Airport and is home to major economic hubs such as Aerospace SEZ and KIADB IT Park. This location enjoys excellent infrastructure connectivity which will be further enhanced by the upcoming Metro.

Let’s talk market…WTI Cabs shares were listed at a premium of 32.6% at Rs 195 in the SME category. The company’s stocks were listed in the NSE SME category on February 19. The company raised around 95 crores by offering 6.4 million shares to the investors. The company set the IPO price band at Rs 140-147 per equity share. A retail investor had to bid for a minimum of 1000 shares aggregating Rs 1.4 lakh rupees. The transport company provides rental cars and transportation services across 130 cities in India. The rental cars include executive, luxury, coaches, SUVs, and sedans. According to the company, the raised money will be utilised to meet working capital, general corporate purpose, and issue expenses.

In other news…The Namo Bharat high-speed trains, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 20 last year, have maintained an average daily ridership of approximately 3,000 passengers since their public launch on October 21. The 17-km-long priority section of the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS Corridor currently has five operational stations include Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, Guldhar, Duhai, and Duhai Depot. The NCRTC revealed that over 2.79 lakh passengers have utilised India’s inaugural rapid rail service. An official from the NCRTC noted that the majority of current passengers travel between Sahibabad and Duhai or vice versa. The true ridership scenario will become apparent with the operationalisation of the next corridor stage, extending an additional 25 km beyond the priority section up to Meerut South.

Moreover…PPFAS Mutual Fund today announced the launch of the Parag Parikh Dynamic Asset Allocation Fund, an open-ended dynamic asset allocation fund. The new fund offer (NFO) will be available for subscription from February 20, 2024, to February 22, 2024. The investment objective of the scheme is to generate income/long term capital appreciation by investing in equity, equity derivatives, fixed income instruments. The allocation between equity instruments and the fixed income will be managed dynamically so as to provide investors with long-term capital appreciation while managing downside risk. The scheme will reopen on February 28, 2024. The performance of the scheme will be benchmarked against the Tier I Benchmark Index – CRISIL Hybrid 50+50 Moderate Index.

Lastly…Let’s take a look how the stocks performed today. The benchmark equity indices closed in positive territory. The NSE Nifty 50 closed 81.55 points or 0.37% higher to settle at 22,122.25, while the BSE Sensex gained 281.52 points or 0.39% to settle at 72,708.16. The broader indices closed in the green, with largecap and small stocks gaining the most. Bank Nifty index gained 150.65 points or 0.32% to settle at 46,535.50. Grasim Industries, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Auto, ICICI Bank, and Bajaj Finance were the top gainers in the Nifty 50. Shares of Coal India fell 4.7% to Rs 457.65 after the company’s management said that it won’t be able to meet the production target of the current financial year by 10 MT.