Business News at 05:30 pm on 5th March, 2024

“Let’s begin…To enable quicker settlements of funds to merchants, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das on Monday announced the introduction of an ‘interoperable payment system’ for Internet banking, which is likely to be launched during the current calendar year. Interoperability has the capability of various digital systems, applications, and databases to link and exchange information. Payment platforms utilise financial technology to facilitate connectivity and data sharing among ecosystem participants such as banks, payment gateways, processors, merchants, and consumers. The introduction of an interoperable payment system is aimed at boosting user confidence in digital payments. Das urged all stakeholders like the industry, digital payment users, payment system operators, and others to take up the responsibility of fulfilling the mission of ‘Har Payment Digital’. ” “Next up…Nirmal Jain, Managing Director of IIFL Finance, clarified on Tuesday that the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) action on the firm’s gold loan business was attributed to ‘operational issues’ and not governance or ethical problems. Jain expressed gratitude to the regulator, stating, “While the directive from RBI appears a little harsh, would like to express utmost gratitude to the regulator.” This comes a day after the RBI barred the Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) from sanctioning and disbursing fresh gold loans due to material supervisory concerns. IIFL Finance holds a gold loan portfolio of Rs 24,692 crore, constituting 32% of its loans, valued at Rs 77,444 crore at the end of the third quarter of FY24. ” “Additionally…The amount of funds raised through securitisation by the small finance banks (SFBs) is expected to exceed Rs 10,000 crore in FY2024, as against Rs 6,400 crore in FY2023, including both pass-through certificate issuance as well as direct assignments, said ICRA. Q3FY2024 alone witnessed the quarterly record high securitisation volumes of ~Rs 4,200 crore. The market share of SFBs in the securitisation market would accordingly touch a peak of 6 per cent in FY2024 from levels of sub-2 per cent prior to FY2022, it added. The increase in the number of SFBs securitising their assets signals a deepening of the domestic securitisation market, as it provides them an alternate route to raise funds to sustain their growth momentum. ” “Let’s talk market…Steel stocks faced a notable downturn, marked by a decline of up to 3.4%, as CLSA downgraded select companies due to stretched valuations and weaker industry spreads compared to rivals. JSW Steel and Tata Steel were downgraded, while Jindal Steel & Power’s underperform rating was reiterated. JSW Steel shares experienced a 3% decline, after reaching a day’s low of Rs 811 on the NSE in early trading today. CLSA downgraded the stock to ‘Sell’ from its previous ‘Underperform’ rating and adjusted the target price to Rs 730 from Rs 810. This correction followed a three-day rally, with over 14.27 lakh shares changing hands on the NSE by 10:05 am, amounting to a total traded value of Rs 117.66 crore. ” “In other news…Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for North India’s largest floating solar power plant, by Hartek Solar, a unit of Hartek Group. With a capacity of 15MW/22MWp, SJVN’s floating solar power plant is located at Nangal Pond, Himachal Pradesh. The project stands as a testament to India’s commitment to combat climate change by adopting innovative solutions in the energy sector. The project, valued at Rs 90 crore is the country’s first downstream solar installation on the Bhakra-Nangal Dam. It will save close to 657795 tonnes of CO2 emissions and produce over 33 Mn units of power output per year, showcasing Hartek Solar’s pioneering spirit in exploring innovative avenues for solar energy deployment. ” “Moreover…Online food ordering and delivery platform, Swiggy will soon offer food delivery services to passengers at four Indian railways stations. The delivery service will start at Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Visakhapatnam, and Vijayawada railway stations beginning March 12. With this, the food delivery services will be extended to 59 more railway stations in the coming weeks, Swiggy said in a statement. Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of IRCTC Sanjay Kumar Jain mentioned that this partnership with Swiggy will bring more convenience and food options to our passengers, making their journeys more memorable. CEO of Swiggy Rohit Kapoor said, quote, We are hopeful of a buoyant response from passengers and restaurant operators on this route, which will hopefully lead to us providing services on more stations, unquote. ” “Lastly…Let’s take a look how the stocks performed today. The benchmark equity indices closed in negative territory on March 04. The NSE Nifty 50 closed nearly 50 points or 0.22% lower to settle at 22,356.30, while the BSE Sensex lost around 200 points or 0.26% to settle at 73,677.13. The broader indices closed in the red, with smallcap and midcap stocks losing the most. Bucking the trend, the Bank Nifty gained 124.90 points or 0.26% to settle at 47,581.00. Tata Motors, Bharti Airtel, M&M, SBI, and Bajaj Auto were the top gainers in the Nifty 50. While, Bajaj Finance, Infosys, LTIMindtree, Wipro, and Nestle India were the major losers in the Nifty 50 on March 05. “