Thackeray bats for Tesla⚡, ZestMoney see 300%⬆, Amazon to help Future Retail💰
Aaditya Thackeray urges to lower Import Duty, ZestMoney see 300% increase in transactions, Amazon willing to help Future Retail, Funding News & more.
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Aaditya Thackeray bats for Tesla, Urges to Lower Import Duty On EVs🚗
The war of words over lowering of import duty on electric vehicles (EVs) refuses to die down. Now, Maharashtra Environment Minister, Aaditya Thackeray, has shot off a letter to Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, in support of Tesla.
In his letter, Thackeray has urged the centre to slash import duty on imported electric vehicles in the upcoming Union Budget on February 1. He called on the FM to temporarily lower import duties for a certain period of time to boost India’s supply chain ecosystem and manufacturing process for EVs.
Meanwhile, the EV four-wheeler space in India continues to heat up. Tesla faces tough competition from local automakers – Mahindra, Tata, Maruti – who manufacture in India.
BNPL platform ZestMoney see 300% increase in transactions📈
Buy Now, Pay Later platform ZestMoney saw a 300% increase in transactions in 2021 driven mostly by the young borrowers. A report released by the firm notes that borrowers in tier-1 and tier-2 cities borrowed to buy fashion, lifestyle, electronics and also spend on online education courses to upgrade their skills.
While most of the customers (median) were in the 23-26 years group, BNPL emerged as the preferred option for people across age groups with the youngest customer being 18 years old and the oldest at 66. The number of millennial and GenZ customer base increased by 2X and 3X respectively, indicating that the BNPL segment has been driven by young cohorts in India in line with the global trend.
Hot Shorts⚡
Financial infrastructure provider M2P Fintech has raised $56 million led by New York-based global private equity firm Insight Partners.
California-based technology company Pixis (formerly known as Pyxis One) said it has raised $100 million (about Rs 743.8 crore) in funding in a round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2.
SaaS Labs, which builds business automation tools for sales and support teams worldwide, has raised $42 million (about Rs 312 crore) in a funding round led by Sequoia Capital India.
Bengaluru-based silver jewellery startup Giva has raised $10 million (Rs 74.5 crore) in a Series-A funding round led by Sixth Sense Ventures and A91 Partners.
Assetgro Fintech Pvt Ltd, the operator of social investment platform StockGro, has raised $32 million (around ₹240 crore) in a Series A round led by BITKRAFT Ventures and General Catalyst.
Willing to help, Amazon tells cash-strapped Future Retail🤝🏻
Ecommerce major Amazon has offered financial assistance to cash-strapped Future Retail Ltd (FRL), with which it is embroiled in a legal battle over FRL’s planned sale of assets to Reliance Industries (RIL) for Rs 25,000 crore.
“We reiterate our willingness and ability to assist FRL in addressing any financial concerns of FRL, within the framework of the agreements, including the solution proposed in the term sheet between Samara Capital, and FRL, which contemplated an infusion of [Rs 7,000 crore] in FRL,” Amazon wrote in a letter sent to FRL’s independent directors on Wednesday.
In the letter, Amazon also warned that FRL was prohibited from “directly or indirectly taking any steps to transfer, dispose, alienate or encumber FRL’s retail assets” without Amazon’s consent.
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