Credit score: Giphy
Additionally on this letter:
■ Pine Labs acquires API infra agency Setu for $70-75 million
■ Ex-BharatPe MD Ashneer Grover blasts RBI’s new mandate
■ Uber explored promoting its Indian ride-hailing enterprise: report
Nexon electrical automobile catches fireplace, Tata Motors pronounces probe
Tata Motors has stated it’s investigating a fire apparently caused by one of its Nexon electric cars in Mumbai, which it termed an “remoted thermal incident”.
A video shared by Twitter consumer @KamalJoshi108, exhibiting one of many firm’s electrical vehicles engulfed in flames, went viral on social media on Wednesday night. It confirmed firefighters making an attempt to extinguish the fireplace in a Nexon electrical automobile (EV) in a suburb of Mumbai.
Probe on: “An in depth investigation is at present being carried out to determine the details of the current remoted thermal incident that’s doing the rounds on social media. We’ll share an in depth response after our full investigation,” India’s largest producer of electrical vehicles stated in a press release.
High-selling EV: Nexon is one in all India’s best-selling electrical passenger vehicles with 9,111 bought in 2021, up from simply 2,529 in 2020.
Tata Motors stated this was the primary such incident involving any of its EVs, of which it has bought greater than 30,000.
Two-wheeler fires: The incident follows a spate of electrical scooter fires which have hampered gross sales and triggered an investigation by the Indian authorities in March.
Preliminary findings of the probe, carried out by the Defence Analysis & Improvement Organisation (DRDO), prompt last month that most of the fires were down to faulty battery cells and modules.
The probe seemed into fireplace incidents involving three corporations — Ola Electrical, PureEV and Okinawa. Ola Electrical, which is backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group, was the nation’s top-selling e-scooter maker in April.
The preliminary findings of the investigation have prompted the federal government to contemplate testing battery cells of e-scooters earlier than they’re allowed to launch, a supply advised Reuters in Could.
Ola CEO takes a dig: Ola founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal took a dig at the media after the video went viral.
“EV fires will occur. Occurs in all world merchandise too. EV fires are a lot much less frequent than ICE (inner combustion engine) fires,” he stated in a tweet, tagging Hormazd Sorabjee, editor of Autocar India.
Earlier this yr, Aggarwal known as an auto journalist “Petrol Media”, and shared footage of Burnol in response to criticism on Twitter.
Pine Labs acquires API infra agency Setu for $70-75 million
Digital funds service supplier Pine Labs has acquired application programming interface (API)-based infrastructure company Setu in a cash-and-equity deal for about $70-75 million.
Pine Labs chief govt Amrish Rau stated the deal was important however refused to reveal its precise dimension.
We reported on February 2 that Pine Labs was taking a look at buying Setu in a cash-and-equity deal within the vary of $70-100 million.
New providers: After the acquisition, Setu will work independently, retain its model entity and proceed to serve its current retailers. Pine Labs will enter the embedded finance area, and achieve entry to Setu’s API infrastructure stack to introduce new providers for its service provider companions.
Rau stated the acquisition will assist Pine Labs present service provider providers resembling id administration and embedded mounted deposits, and permit retailers to launch a line of credit score to their clients.
Latest buys: In October 2021, Pine Labs announced its foray into the payment gateway segment for on-line retailers and new-age direct-to-consumer (D2C) manufacturers with the launch of Plural.
Earlier this yr, it acquired Mumbai-based online payments startup Qfix Infocomm. Final yr, it purchased Kuala Lumpur-based funds and discovery platform Fave in a $45-million all-cash deal.
Finished deal: Neuron7.ai, an AI-powered buyer and discipline service software program agency, has raised $10 million in a funding round led by current traders Battery Ventures and Nexus Enterprise Companions. The corporate, headquartered in San Jose, California, plans to make use of the funds to develop its product and buyer success groups within the US and India.
Ex-BharatPe MD Ashneer Grover blasts RBI’s new mandate
BharatPe’s former managing director Ashneer Grover, who isn’t one to mince phrases, has lashed out against the Reserve Bank of India’s recent mandate barring non-bank pre-paid cost devices (PPI) from being loaded with credit score strains.
Grover took to Twitter, calling the regulator’s transfer a method to shield “lazy” banks’ bank card enterprise from the rising reputation of fintech corporations’ buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) providers.
Quote: “Not permitting loading of pre-paid devices via credit score is aimed toward defending the banks’ lazy bank card enterprise from fintech’s potent BNPL enterprise. It’s a flex transfer by banks – rent-seeking. However, market is market and rules will ultimately come round to what market wants,” Grover wrote within the tweet.
Fintech founders upset: The one-page round issued by the RBI on Monday has caused confusion and anger among fintech companies. Just a few, resembling Jupiter, EarlySalary and KreditBee, have chosen to halt all pre-paid card transactions briefly.
We also reported earlier today that high bank card challenger manufacturers and lending corporations are becoming a member of fingers to petition the union authorities and the RBI over the brand new mandate.
Additionally learn: RBI’s stance on fintech has government backing
Uber explored promoting its Indian ride-hailing enterprise, says report
World ride-hailing big Uber apparently explored options for selling its Indian ride-hailing business to corporations however suspended potential talks after a worldwide collapse in tech startup valuations, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.
The report stated Uber, which together with rival Ola has been struggling to make a revenue in India, additionally contemplated a whole exit from the nation. It has beforehand exited markets resembling China and Southeast Asia by promoting its enterprise to native giants Didi and Seize.
Uber denies report: After the story broke, Uber denied any potential sale talks for its India enterprise. “Bloomberg’s reporting is categorically false. We have now by no means explored exiting India — not even for a minute. Uber stays dedicated to India and continues to rent folks aggressively,” stated Ruchica Tomar, an Uber govt.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi stated on Twitter there was “zero reality” to the report.
Uber launched in India in 2013 and at present gives rides in 100 cities throughout the nation.
Tweet of the day
Twitter checks Notes function with 2,500-word restrict
Microblogging web site Twitter revealed on Wednesday that it is testing a new feature called Notes to permit customers to share long-form content material – as much as 2,500 phrases – on and off the social media platform.
Twitter stated the transfer was a response to seeing folks use the platform to submit screenshots of longer bulletins and steer followers to exterior newsletters.
The corporate revealed that its publication platform, Revue, will now be part of Twitter Write, together with Notes, because it seeks new methods to interact customers and increase income.
Say hiya to Meta Pay: After rebranding Fb to Meta final yr, Mark Zuckerberg has now renamed Facebook Pay to Meta Pay as he continues to chase his metaverse ambitions.
In a Fb submit, Zuckerberg stated, “Past the present options, we’re engaged on one thing new – a pockets for the metaverse that allows you to securely handle your id, what you personal, and the way you pay”.
Tesla factories ‘burning money’: In the meantime, Elon Musk says Tesla’s new factories in Berlin and Texas continue to burn billions of dollars owing to battery shortages and port points in China slowing down manufacturing.
Immediately’s ETtech High 5 publication was curated by Zaheer Service provider in Mumbai and Ruchir Vyas in New Delhi. Graphics and illustrations by Rahul Awasthi.
