Business Today 26 June 2022

When Bhavish Aggarwal stormed into the scene with his idea of a disruptive ride-hailing service for India—Ola Cabs—over a decade ago, he was celebrated as one of the poster boys of India’s growing startup ecosystem. Over the years, Aggarwal’s stature grew as his ride-hailing service took on global giant Uber, and lived to tell the tale, continuing to give it a tough fight. So when, in February 2021, Aggarwal began building the world’s largest two-wheeler factory under his company Ola Electric, all eyes were on him once again. Would Aggarwal, by now a star entrepreneur, disrupt the two-wheeler market this time with his electric scooter as he did with Ola Cabs? The two-wheeler market, dominated by big boys like Hero MotoCorp and Bajaj Auto, was a very different game. Then…

103 PER CENT of long-period average (LPA) rainfall will be received by India this season, says IMD 75 PER CENT of India’s annual rainfall is during this period > 50 PER CENT of India’s farmlands depend on the southwest monsoon to grow crops 87 CM IMD’s new normal LPA for rainfall; it was 88 cm earlier Source: CMIE Economic Outlook, media reports…

5G ADOPTION IS SET TO SHOOT UP BY 2025, WITH NORTH AMERICA LEADING THE WAY Estimated 5G adoption as a share of total mobile connections Even as India awaits the roll-out of 5G services, the zippy technology will contribute $450 billion to the country’s economy in the next 10-15 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said recently. With high speeds, superior reliability and negligible latency, 5G will catapult the mobile ecosystem into new realms. It also has the potential to transform every industry—from safer transportation to remote healthcare, and precision agriculture to seamless logistics. Here’s where 5G stands in other parts of the world GLOBAL DEPLOYMENT 198 The number of operators who have already deployed 5G networks globally, according to CLSA 72 countries across 1,947 cities already have 5G networks; China leads with…

IPO RUN HALTED INDIAN COMPANIES had a great run last year in terms of raising money through IPOs. But the same cannot be said about IPO investors, as most newly listed companies have fared badly after listing. The BSE IPO index is down over 21 per cent this calendar year—significantly higher than the 5 per cent fall of the Sensex. Then, the IPO barometer is nearly 30 per cent away from its highs touched last year even as the Sensex is around 11 per cent lower than its record peak. The recent listings of eMudhra, Ethos and LIC, too, have all been tepid. —ASHISH RUKHAIYAR ₹1.39 LAKH CRORE AMOUNT MOBILISED IN THE PRIMARY MARKET IN FY22, UP 26.1 PER CENT OVER THE PREVIOUS FISCAL. THIS INCLUDES IPOs, FPOs AND RIGHTS…

SALIL’S INFY THE REAPPOINTMENT of Salil Parekh as MD & CEO of Infosys for five years will be the first time anyone beyond the cofounders has assumed the top job for a second term. It comes with an 88 per cent salary hike to touch ₹80 crore. Under his leadership, the company has grown impressively and the numbers tell the story, be it on revenue, profitability or its performance on the bourses. The last quarter of FY22, however, saw pressure on margins and Parekh will now need to fix that. —KRISHNA GOPALAN CRISIS MANAGER? Smartphone market leader Xiaomi now has a new honcho to help it tide over its current troubles. Alvin Tse, who is taking over as the General ager of the company’s India operations, has impres Mansive credentials.…

AN INTENSE BATTLE for market share in the world’s third-largest domestic aviation market is brewing. Competition is set to intensify as the market gets ready to welcome two more players—low-cost carrier (LCC) Akasa Air, which is set to commence operations in July; and the re-launch of Jet Airways later this year. Recently, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-promoted Akasa released the first look of its Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. With the lowest seat-mile cost for a single-aisle airplane and high dispatch reliability, the Boeing 737 MAX may provide Akasa with a competitive edge. “Today, passengers seek environmentally friendly options to travel, and Akasa is proud to be an environ-mentally friendly airline with the youngest and greenest fleet in global aviation,” Co-founder and CEO Vinay Dube tells Business Today. The airline’s scheduled launch in June was…