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More layoffs at BYJU’S.

Amid ongoing conflicts with lenders, the edtech major is laying off more than 1,000 people, which will impact employees across departments like mentoring, logistics, training, sales, post-sales, and finance.

Reportedly, BYJU’S HR team last week conducted individual meetings with employees, and following the discussions, they were asked to voluntarily resign through the official HR portal.

Meanwhile, Indian airline IndiGo made the largest deal in aviation history on the opening day of the Paris Airshow with its order of 500 narrowbody jets from Airbus.

The multibillion-dollar deal eclipsed Air India’s provisional purchase of 470 jets earlier this year as the country’s two largest carriers plan for a sharp expansion in regional travel demand. The deliveries will be made between 2030 and 2035.

Speaking of Paris, France is making a major push to position itself as Europe’s hub for artificial intelligence (AI). 

While AI is viewed as impacting industries from finance to healthcare, it is also caught in the middle of the broader technology battle playing out between China and the US.

Lastly, meet the women who run Antarctica’s penguin post office. 

Home to thousands of Gentoo penguins, Port Lockroy scientific base, the UK’s first permanent base, is one of the busiest places in the “frozen continent!”

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• MSMEs sign up for business coaching 
• DriveU on a path to profitability
• India’s eB2B market to grow exponentially

Here’s your trivia for today: How many colours were on the original Pride flag, flown at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade in 1978?

Small businesses

MSMEs sign up for business coaching

MSMEs traditionally ran their business using tried-and-tested methods and many failed to elevate their game with the changing times. But now, many entrepreneurs are keen to adapt to the vagaries of the business environment and up their game with the guidance of business coaches.  

While new entrepreneurs turn to coaches for support in establishing efficient systems and processes to facilitate business scalability, business coaching helps leaders of family-run businesses think out of the box.

Helping hand:

• Business coaching improves one’s entrepreneurial skills and ability to solve problems themselves using tools such as goal-setting and accountability.
• MSMEx, an education and advisory platform for small business owners, has seen a 5X jump in enrolments for business coaching in the last three years.
• India needs around 10,000 capable coaches to serve the rising demand from entrepreneurs and from Fortune 500 corporates, says Dhirendra Gautam of India Coaching Federation.

Funding Alert

Startup: Eye Mantra

Amount: $10M

Round: Undisclosed

Startup: Yarn Bazaar

Amount: Rs 15 Cr

Round: Pre-Series A

Startup: Invincible Ocean

Amount: Rs 3 Cr

Round: Equity

Startup

DriveU on a path to profitability

Car drivers’ aggregator platform DriveU offers on-demand and affordable private driver service. In 2021, it launched DriveU super app to offer additional services such as doorstep car wash, car servicing, FASTag recharge, and insurance renewals. 

The startup is now planning to launch a premium driver service called DriveU+, which will offer experienced and verified drivers to customers.

For hire:

• DriveU’s primary goal now is to grow its revenue 2X—from Rs 61 crore in FY23 to Rs 120 crore—without any additional cash infusion.
• The company has over 650,000 direct customers along with 150+ businesses across various services on the app.
• It has so far raised $8 million through equity and debt financing, and aims to raise $10 million more.

B2B

India’s eB2B market to grow exponentially

India’s eB2B market is projected to grow from $5-6 billion in CY 2022 to $90-100 billion by 2030 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 40-45%, as per a Redseer report. It noted that platforms catering to retailers constitute 70-80% of the eB2B market while the remaining cater to wholesalers. 

Formalising retail:

• The market growth will be led by deepening penetration among retailers across categories and geographies and a higher wallet share for eB2B platforms. 
• The eB2B market is expected to solve the challenges in the unorganised retail segment dominated by general trade, which makes up 83% of the overall $950 billion market.
• Multi-category platforms like Udaan have gained market share to reach 55-60% of the retailer-led eB2B market.

News & updates

• Major crisis: UK borrowers are facing a cliff edge that could damage the economy as rising mortgage costs hit deal renewals and the number of products available shrinks. Figures from Moneyfacts showed the average two-year fixed rate mortgage on a residential property in Britain rose from 5.98% Friday to 6.01%, its highest level since December 1.
• Not on axis: Earth’s tilt has changed by 31.5 inches between 1993-2010 because of the amount of groundwater humans have pumped from the planet’s interior. In that period, humans removed 2,150 gigatons of water from natural reservoirs in the planet’s crust. 
• CBDCs: The IMF wants central banks to agree on a common regulatory framework for digital currencies that will allow global interoperability. Failure to agree on a common platform would create a vacuum that would likely be filled by cryptocurrencies, Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said on Monday.

How many colours were on the original Pride flag, flown at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade in 1978?

Answer: Eight. (The pink and turquoise stripes were dropped by 1979 for production reasons.)

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