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The spotlight is back on electric vehicles.

The government has notified the PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-DRIVE) scheme to boost EV adoption. Building on the FAME II scheme, it offers incentives for new emerging EV types such as e-ambulances and e-trucks.

Six months after launching the EV policy, the government has reportedly decided to scale down the efforts to woo international giants like Tesla, VinFast, Mercedes, and BMW to establish EV manufacturing units in the country. Instead, now Indian carmakers have its ears, and they are pitching hard to get hybrids the same status as EVs. 

However, globally, EV sales have stumbled. There are many reasons behind the plunging sales: removal of EV subsidies, lack of highway charging stations, and protecting industry from Chinese competition. 

ICYMI: 8 myths about electric cars, and why they exist.

But we must not forget why EV adoption is important in the first place—climate change. Now, as it turns out, a 3,775-year-old log may redefine our emission reduction strategies.

When a team of researchers analysed the log, they found that it had bypassed decomposition and retained most of its carbon content by being buried under clay soil. This method of ‘wood vaulting’ can be used to bury wood that is no longer commercially viable to slow down CO2 release.

Moving on, YourStory recently concluded its 15th edition of TechSparks Bengaluru—India’s largest startup-tech summit.

Did you miss the event? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Here are five key takeaways from India’s top heads that will help you shape your own path forward.

You can check all the coverage from the event here.

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• CRED’s operating leverage edge
• Boosting India’s net zero vision
• Bringing blockchain to the public

Here’s your trivia for today: Which is the oldest continuously published newspaper in India?

Fintech

CRED’s operating leverage edge

Fintech platform CRED saw its total revenue surge by 66% to Rs 2,473 crore in FY24 from Rs 1,484 crore in FY23, while operating losses narrowed by 41% to Rs 609 crore from 1,024 crore in the previous fiscal year​.

According to CEO Kunal Shah, CRED is also reaping the benefits of what the tech world calls “operating leverage” when it comes to cutting losses–that is, the company is scaling its revenue without a proportionate increase in costs.

Monetisation journey:

• CRED’s user base also grew significantly, with over 75% of its new users were acquired organically. This helped reduce customer acquisition costs by 40%.
• Member engagement has deepened, CRED said, with 35% of users interacting with three or more of its products, while 90% redeemed rewards monthly. As a result, monetised members grew by 58%.
• Shah is also betting big on its newest wealth tech offering Cred Money, stating that the intent for the offering was to “make it very easy to have good financial behaviour and be more responsible with all things money”.

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Funding Alert

Startup: BASIC Home Loan

Amount: $10.6M

Round: Series B

Startup: Lissun

Amount: $2.5M

Round: Pre-Series A

Startup: Conscious Chemist

Amount: 12 Cr

Round: Undisclosed

Startup

Boosting India’s net zero vision

Sustainability has many roadblocks, including the lack of accessible, tailored financing solutions that can effectively support the high upfront costs and specific needs of clean technologies. 

Recognising the increasing demand for sustainability solutions, especially in India, Mumbai-based TapFin was launched by Aditya Singh, Pramod Marar and Terniza Berry in 2023 as a tech-enabled platform connecting service suppliers with participants in the sustainability ecosystem. 

Green financing:

• Tapfin provides comprehensive financial services, including financing, insurance, demand aggregation, market linkages, and original equipment manufacturer selection, to startups and MSMEs within the sustainability ecosystem.
• The startup partners with leading banks and NBFCs to offer tailored financing solutions. In addition to financing, it also offers several value-added services like insurance coverage for clean mobility assets.
• The company’s initial focus has been on clean mobility, where it offers a comprehensive range of services tailored to the specific needs of participants in this segment. However, it plans to expand its platform across various sustainability verticals, including solar and other renewable energy technologies.

TechSparks 

Bringing blockchain to the public

CoinDCX Co-founder and CEO Sumit Gupta believes blockchain technology has all the attributes needed to build any infrastructure which directly deals with the citizen. 

Speaking at a fireside chat at TechSparks Bengaluru 2024, Gupta emphasised the potential of blockchain technology in building public facing services, the opportunities afforded by India’s vast available talent pool, and the challenges in such an undertaking.  

Governance framework:

• Gupta believes that India is in a very unique position to take advantage of building digital public infrastructure (DPI) with blockchain technology. There is a large pool of talent and developers who are already building on the public blockchain infrastructure. 
• However, adoption of blockchain technology is not without challenges, with a single transaction on a blockchain taking five to six steps where multiple signing is required. “That, I believe, is a complex user experience right now that we are sitting in,” he added.
• Gupta also highlighted the important role played by compliance in building these infrastructure, adding that it wasn’t something people focus on while the industry is new, but it will give comfort to regulators, and the larger industry, and that limit bad actors from using the infrastructure and its framework.

News & updates

• Cutting red tape: China’s property stocks gained after three major Chinese cities—Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou—lowered restrictions constraining property transactions. The Hang Seng Mainland Properties Index rose by more than 6%, while the CSI 300 real estate index jumped by close to 10%.
• ‘For profit’: Japanese telecom company SoftBank will reportedly invest $500 million in OpenAI’s latest funding round. OpenAI is in talks to raise $6.5 billion from investors at a valuation of $150 billion.SoftBank joins Thrive Capital, which is investing over $1 billion in the round.
• Video search: Google has started rolling out a new video search feature, allowing users to find video content based on clips they capture. Users can now fire up Google Lens and record a short video of something that you want to know more about. 

Which is the oldest continuously published newspaper in India?

Answer: Bombay Samachar (now Mumbai Samachar). Established in 1822, it is published in Gujarati and English.

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