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FAME II subsidies on EVs are reducing.

The Indian government has decided to reduce the FAME II subsidy on electric two-wheelers to Rs 10,000 per kWh from Rs 15,000, said an official notification from the Ministry of Heavy Industries. Further, the previous cap on the maximum subsidy, which accounted for 40% of the vehicle’s ex-factory price, has now been decreased to 15%. 

ICYMI: Is the concept of ‘ownership’ changing? 

Meanwhile, we will soon be able to edit messages sent via WhatsApp…for up to 15 minutes. The edit button seems to be in the rage with tech companies as Twitter too allows users to edit their tweets for up to 30 minutes, while Apple introduced message editing on Messengers last year.

So, go make all those embarrassing typos…as long as you are within the time limit?

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Policybazaar aims to be profitable in FY24
• First-ever B2B transaction on ONDC
• PhonePe’s fundraise reaches $850M

Here’s your trivia for today: What does the “E” stand for in the name of the restaurant chain Chuck E. Cheese?

Fintech

Policybazaar aims to be profitable in FY24

PB Fintech—the parent of PolicyBazaar and Paisabazaar—narrowed down its consolidated losses for the fourth quarter of FY23. The online platform that offers insurance and lending products expects to achieve profitability in FY24.

Numbers game:

• Consolidated loss for the three months ended March narrowed to Rs 9.34 crore from a loss of Rs 219 crore in the corresponding quarter during the last fiscal. 
• The revenue from operations jumped 61% year-on-year to Rs 869 crore during the quarter.
• The fintech firm closed its FY23 at a revenue of Rs 2557.84, marking a growth of about 80% over FY22, aided by growth in existing business, even as the expenses shot up to Rs 3304.6 crore from Rs 2383.6 crore the previous year.

Ecommerce

First-ever B2B transaction on ONDC

Retail tech company SignCatch and B2B trade platform Rapidor have executed the first-ever business-to-business (B2B) golden transaction on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC).

Through the integration of their respective B2B buyer and seller platforms on the ONDC, SignCatch and Rapidor aim to create seamless interoperability, enabling smooth transactions between buyers and sellers, especially MSMEs.

Trade-friendly:

• Enabled by SignCatch’s Bech.app on the ONDC, Delhi-based Organic Diet and Herbal Products received an order from Thane-based Swabharat Stores LLP through Rapidor’s B2B buyer platform, Placeorder.com.
• Several other MSMEs, including Laxmi Bhog from Jaipur and Red Zone from Tirupur, have received and executed B2B orders on the ONDC network.
• ONDC sees ecommerce order volume of more than 25,000 orders logged per day, up from 50 per day in January. The number of retail merchants on the platform has risen to over 35,000 from about 800 in January.

Funding

PhonePe’s fundraise reaches $850M

As part of an ongoing $1 billion fundraise, PhonePe has received a tranche of $100 million from General Atlantic. This infusion takes the fintech firm’s total fundraise to $850 million. The ongoing round values the startup at $12 billion.

Cash-ing up:

• In January 2023, General Atlantic had invested $350 million in PhonePe, as part of the fundraise.
• So far, the Walmart-backed firm has received $550 million from General Atlantic and co-investors, $200 million from Walmart, and $100 million from Ribbit Capital, Tiger Global, and TVS Capital Funds.
• The fintech company will deploy the funds to build and scale new businesses, including insurance, wealth management, lending, stockbroking, ONDC-based shopping, and account aggregators.

News & updates

• Risky business: Facebook owner Meta was hit by a record $1.3 billion European Union privacy fine and given a deadline to stop shipping users’ data to the US after regulators said it failed to protect personal information from the American security services.
• New challenge: Microsoft evaded a potential early legal obstacle in its $69 billion deal to acquire “Call of Duty” videogame maker Activision Blizzard Inc when a US judge refused to allow gamers in a private suit to preliminarily block the acquisition.
• Piece of history: Kurt Cobain’s smashed Fender Stratocaster electric guitar sold at auction for $595,900, more than 10 times its original estimate. Reassembled but unplayable, it was expected to sell for between $60,000 and $80,000 at Julien’s auction at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York.

What does the “E” stand for in the name of the restaurant chain Chuck E. Cheese?

Answer: Entertainment.

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