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<ul><li>The government’s Open Network for Digital Commerce (<keyword id="5862596" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ondc" source="Orion">ONDC</keyword>) initiative, which seeks to democratise e-commerce, is seen aiding increased digital adoption by <keyword id="6393272" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="msmes" source="Orion">MSMEs</keyword>.</li><li>As per RedSeer, India MSME digital services market is set to grow 6x in the next five years.</li><li>The <keyword id="118240" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="MSME-ministry" source="Orion">MSME ministry</keyword> plans to boost MSME contribution to the GDP to 50% by 2025.</li></ul>Digitalisation is playing a crucial role in accelerating growth in the Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector. And the government’s Open Network for Digital Commerce (<keyword id="5862596" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ondc" source="Orion">ONDC</keyword>) initiative, which seeks to democratise e-commerce, is likely to spur increased digital adoption by <keyword id="6393272" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="msmes" source="Orion">MSMEs</keyword>, says a report by Elara Securities. The report also shared a survey finding (published in June 2021) conducted by Bluehost, a web hosting solutions provider, that said Indian MSMEs are rapidly adopting digital payments over cash – 72% of payments were through the digital mode compared while cash transactions accounted for 28%. Not only are new small businesses embracing digitalisation, more and more existing MSMEs are going digital too. This is, however, far short of that achieved in countries like the US and China. The percentage of Indian MSMEs that turned online grew from 32% in FY16 to 55% in FY20, as per data from RedSeer. “To compare, in the US, 54% of small businesses used emails in 2017 and in China, 89% of the MSMEs were already digitally connected by 2015. This indicates significant growth headroom in terms of digital connections in India alone,” said a report by Elara Securities, adding that currently only 4% of MSMEs are truly digitally engaged, the report said. As per RedSeer, India’ MSME digital services market is set to grow six times in the next five years, taking the market opportunity from $1.5 billion to $9 billion by FY25, at a CAGR of 43%. About 73% of the growth is estimated to come from a surge in the number of digital businesses and 27% from higher average spend on digital services. ONDC to build digital backbone for MSMEs Covid forced many MSMEs to embrace digital. Now, there is a larger incentive for small businesses to go digital thanks to the government’s Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) initiative. It provides opportunities for small businesses to grow via e-commerce, by connecting them with network partners – taking products digital. “ONDC is expected to expand the user base for all digital/e-commerce apps/platforms in a way similar to UPI, which revolutionised the payment industry and increased the overall usage of online payments,” said the Elara Securities report. The platform will make it easy for small businesses to take their service portfolio online and become digitally relevant to their customers. “With such growth headroom, ONDC may bring in more and more MSMEs into e-commerce’s fold and accelerate the shift from offline to online,” Elara said. There were 80.16 lakh registered MSMEs as on March 31, 2022 – contributing close to 26% to India’s gross domestic product (GDP). The sector generates about 12 crore jobs across industries/regions and is a major wealth creator at the grassroot level, as per the report. The <keyword id="118240" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="MSME-ministry" source="Orion">MSME ministry</keyword> plans to boost its contribution to the GDP to 50% by 2025. It also aims to double the number of MSMEs in the next five years with a focus on high-growth industries. “The sector holds immense potential in supporting India’s ambitious vision of a $40 trillion economy by 2047,” says a recent report by industry body Assocham. Improving credit growth Apart from the digital push, the government has been putting in all efforts to aid the sector’s quick growth through nuanced policy support. “Rural demand traction, improving MSME credit growth and manufacturing revival and supportive government/RBI policies are enabling a prolific seedbed for MSMEs,” said the report by Elara Securities. To give the sector a further boost, industry body <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/reit-like-structures-loans-against-gst-filings-can-help-solve-msme-fundraising-problems-assocham/articleshow/98518295.cms">Assocham recommended that banks </a>can fund MSME working capital requirements against GST filings. “Banks could fund working capital requirements against GST filings, which are more reliable quantitatively, as compared to collateralized loans. This would not only enable MSMEs easy access to funds but also spur formalisation through GST registrations,” Assocham said. The industry body also added that the government could come up with a structure similar to real estate investment trusts (REITs) and infrastructure investment trusts (InVITs) to lend specifically to MSMEs via pooling funds. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/first-82-days-of-2023-see-more-layoffs-than-the-entire-2022/slidelist/98960848.cms">First 82 days of 2023 see more layoffs than the entire 2022</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/16-startups-have-laid-off-100-percent-employees-in-2023-so-far-3-of-them-in-india/slidelist/98941663.cms">16 startups have laid off 100 percent employees in 2023 so far – 3 of them in India</a>

Digitalisation, credit growth, government policies to drive MSME growth, say experts

By Deepa Bakhru and Smriti Gangwal The pace of <keyword id="168300" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="digitalisation" source="Orion">digitalisation</keyword> in business activities in India has been a testimony to the tremendous potential of digital transformation. Moreover, with the outbreak of <keyword id="8763838" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="COVID-19" source="Orion">COVID-19</keyword>, most business operations moved online, accelerating a digital transformation that has been underway for decades. Today, technology is commonly interwoven into every business function. Companies globally, including in India, are increasing investments on data management and standardisation, <keyword id="107950" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="artificial-intelligence" source="Orion">artificial intelligence</keyword> and shifting of applications and infrastructure to the cloud. Moreover, the Indian government is also increasingly putting digital strategies at the centre of its policy <a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2021-08-19-gartner-india-govt-it-spending-forecast-2022">agendas</a>. There has been a paradigm shift in the mechanism of <keyword id="936384" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="filing-tax-returns" source="Orion">filing tax returns</keyword> from manual to e-filing, introduction of GST, faceless assessment and appeal, etc. Also, the Income-tax department has revamped the income tax portal to provide several new features for ease of compliance. The tech industry is eyeing the forthcoming Budget in order to get clarifications on digital taxation to resolve ambiguities in various laws around it. Some of the key expectations of the tech industry from the upcoming <keyword id="10547300" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Budget-2022" source="Orion">Budget 2022</keyword>, are enumerated as under: <ul><li>Presently, there is an ambiguity in relation to the scope of equalisation levy (EQL)provisions, for instance, digital/electronic facilities could be held to cover any communication by way of emails or calls or any other means using the internet. Further, Indian tax treaties do not support the claim of credit of EQL in case of non-residents, in its home country. Therefore, the government needs to provide clarity in terms of scope of EQL and introduce a mechanism for claiming credit of EQL paid by non-residents in the home country. Additionally, a mechanism needs to be introduced for claiming refund/adjustment of excess EQL deposited by the e-commerce operator.</li></ul><ul><li><keyword id="6704918" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Significant-Economic-Presence" source="Orion">Significant Economic Presence</keyword> (SEP) has significantly widened the scope of the term ‘business connection’ with the thresholdsbeing prescribed. Though SEP was introduced to tax digital transactions, based on the wordings of the provisions, it may include physical transactions in its ambit. Further, considering the broad coverage of SEP and EQL, there is an overlap of the transactions covered under both regimes. There could also be tax deducted at source (TDS) impact in case the same is being considered as royalty or fees for technical services (FTS), in case of non-resident taxpayers. The government needs to clarify on the coverage of SEP along with the interplay between SEP, EQL and TDS provisions. Further, clear profit attribution rules also need to be introduced.</li></ul><ul><li>Likewise, clarity is also required on the applicability of EQL/TDS provisions on cloud-based transactions which is currently uncertain due to the contrary positions adopted by taxpayers and tax authorities.</li></ul><ul><li>Relevant amendments are required to be made in the Act to provide clarity on final <a href="https://www.oecd.org/tax/beps/statement-on-a-two-pillar-solution-to-address-the-tax-challenges-arising-from-the-digitalisation-of-the-economy-october-2021.pdf">Pillar </a>provisions including the consequent abolishment of SEP and EQL.</li></ul><ul><li>Recently, there has been an increase in data centre activities being undertaken by captive units in India and with the introduction of data localisation regulations, there has been a surge in the number of data centres being set up in India. Tax authorities have been considering such operations as activities constituting PE for non-residents. Clarifications need to be provided to put an end to the prolonged litigation.</li></ul><ul><li>The tech industry incurs heavy advertising, marketing and promotion (AMP) expenditure for promoting their products which are being considered as capital in nature, leading to additions including transfer pricing adjustments. Clarifications in the tax treatment of AMP expenses is required around the said issue. </li></ul>Additionally, taxpayers also seek the following policy interventions: <ul><li>Refund of input tax credit on capital goods should be permitted; </li><li>Mix of panel members (including independent members) in dispute resolution panel (DRP)should be introduced for better evaluation of merits of each case; and </li><li>Time limits for conclusion of appeals by Commissioner of Income (Appeals) [CIT(A)] and Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) should be prescribed.</li></ul><cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Conclusion" comment="subhead" text="Conclusion">Conclusion</cmsannotation> India’s tax regime is being geared up to cover newer tech business models. However, the overlapping of certain provisions and lack of clarity leads to interpretational, administrative and operational challenges to taxpayers. Accordingly, taxpayers are looking forward to clarifications to resolve such ambiguities. Deepa Bakhru is Senior Manager and Smriti Gangwal is Manager with Deloitte Haskins and Sells LLP SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/budget/news/opinion-tax-consolidation-schemes-need-of-the-hour-for-indias-renewable-energy-sector/articleshow/89118730.cms">OPINION: Tax consolidation schemes is the need of the hour for India’s renewable energy sector</a>

OPINION: These tech issues need clarity and amendments

The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has stopped in its tracks the green shoots of economic recovery that were visible. Simultaneously, it induced a triple crisis of disrupting the supply chain, demand, and workforce for India's fragile Micro, Small, and <keyword id="126907" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Medium-Enterprises">Medium Enterprises</keyword> (<keyword id="6393272" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="MSMEs">MSMEs</keyword>), which are often cited as the backbone of the Indian Economy. While MSMEs were already finding it difficult to manage their cash flows including the rigorous lending criteria of banks and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) with limited assets to use as collaterals, this disruption meant a double whammy of further delay in settling of their receivables as well as lenders becoming more risk averse. While the government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced a slew of measures, including the issuance of credit schemes and calling out financial institutions to adopt cash-flow-based lending, yet the transmission of these relief measures to a majority of MSMEs remains a challenge. This highlights that the crux of the problem is not the lack of schemes, rather the informal nature of MSMEs and lack of organised set of financial documents, which casts a unique challenge for lenders to assess the creditworthiness of these enterprises. Today, just 40% of the sector’s credit demand is met by formal credit. Add to that the information asymmetry between the data available for MSMEs vis-à-vis large and mid-sized corporates where the lenders’ tend to apply the same lens of existing credit-risk assessment processes to MSMEs to those applicable for larger corporates. This often multiplies the operating cost for lenders to serve MSMEs as compared to the return on their loans. Though this scenario and the increasing credit requirements of MSMEs point to a colossal credit gap of ₹ 30 lakh crore, it underscores the critical role financial technology (FinTech) companies and new-age lenders can play in supporting MSMEs to adapt to the changing reality and respond to the challenges. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Capitalising on creditworthiness" comment="subhead" text="Capitalising on creditworthiness">Capitalising on creditworthiness</cmsannotation> The marriage between technology and financial services provides digital lenders an opportunity to focus on making MSMEs profitable and creditworthy. Alternative sources of data, such as cash flow, utility bill payments, point-of-sale transaction records, and even information from e-accounting programs can help put in place a comprehensive model to assess MSMEs’ business health. Further, by incorporating Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and analytics into these models, lenders can build a more accurate financial health model with a comprehensive credit risk profile to detect and mitigate fraud and NPA risks. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Unlocking cash flow and reducing days sales outstanding" comment="subhead" text="Unlocking cash flow and reducing days sales outstanding">Unlocking cash flow and reducing days sales outstanding</cmsannotation> In addition to simplifying the lending process, innovative technology leveraged by FinTechs can enable electronic invoice presentation, processing, and reconciliation that will also help in better credit monitoring. Considering that chasing late payments is a tiresome process that leads to locked up working capital, e-invoicing can help in significantly removing procedural delays resulting from manual processing of invoices. It also reduces the time required to make and receive payments, gives a real-time status of pending invoices, and helps release locked up cash flow. In addition, MSMEs can also leverage these e-invoices to avail loans instantly, as the process to verify the genuineness of invoices by lenders can be reduced significantly. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Financing through digital supply chain platforms" comment="subhead" text="Financing through digital supply chain platforms">Financing through digital supply chain platforms</cmsannotation> <keyword id="168300" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="digitalisation">Digitalisation</keyword> of supply chains has been a game-changer for MSMEs that has enabled faster liquidity for them. While banks continue to assess creditworthiness for collateral-based lending to MSMEs, new-age lending platforms can digitally evaluate transaction data through AI-driven credit models in near real-time and offer trade financing products and services contextualised to the parties involved in the trade. Some platforms allow integration of their products and services into banks’ MSME platforms, which can subsequently be offered to MSME customers through digital medium. While no one solution can bridge the existing credit gap for MSMEs, leveraging alternative financing tools, such as e-invoice financing, peer-to-peer lending, and TReDS can go a long way in addressing this issue and create an enabling environment for MSMEs. Further, with the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to disrupt economic activities worldwide, FinTechs, banks, and NBFCs will have to come together to build differentiated lending models to forge the right balance for financial stability and create solutions for the credit needs of MSMEs. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/sona-comstar-ipo-price-gmp-should-you-subscribe/articleshow/83505013.cms">Sona Comstar IPO worth ₹5,550 crore opens today – find out if this EV battery player has enough juice for a long ride</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/why-dodla-dairy-has-no-plans-to-expand-beyond-southern-india/articleshow/83503817.cms">Here’s why Dodla Dairy has no plans to expand beyond southern India for at least the next two years even with its IPO</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/adani-group-under-sebi-scanner-on-market-manipulation/articleshow/83501698.cms">Gautam Adani loses over $7 billion in net worth after questions over the meteoric rise in group stocks</a>

Cash, capital and credit trickle down to small businesses at a frustratingly slow pace — tech can speed them up

<ul><li>We bring to you a series of columns from industry experts, looking back at the last 10 years. </li><li>The columns will explore how the media, marketing and advertising industry has transformed in the last decade. </li><li>Amaresh Godbole, CEO, Digitas India walks us through his personal journey from 2010 to 2020 as well as the different stages of evolution that the digital industry went through in the last decade.</li></ul>The year was 2009. I was trying to convince my boss to accept my resignation. He couldn’t fathom why I would leave a fast-track career in an established network agency to join an unknown digital shop. I couldn’t blame him. Everyone I knew in the agency world felt that it was hara-kiri. There was a tsunami coming and the MarComm industry at the time was in collective denial about it. In the decade since, I have witnessed the industry get from there to acceptance in classic stages. 2009-2010 – Denial This was the era of flash banners, microsites and entrepreneur led digital shops. Some got as far as animated ‘viral’ videos, typically depicting popular Bollywood characters or mythology to support the ‘real’ campaign. All of it was at best considered cute. CMOs and CCOs had no time for digital work and usually the junior brand manager that drew a short straw was put in charge of it. Some industry luminaries were even dismissing digital as a passing trend. With barely 60 million users online, no one bothered to argue. Of course, the fees reflected the sentiment, and seemed like a cruel joke when compared to the soon to perish 15% commission model. 2011-2012 – Anger A new reality emerged. Smartphones + Mobile Data + Social Media = Consumer voice at scale. Brands and agencies alike plunged in, trying to understand how to play this game. The ones who didn’t soon realized that it was akin to not attending your own trial where the consumer was judge, jury and executioner. I recall, embarrassingly so in hindsight, that we had an entire brainstorm to understand how hashtags worked. Facebook applications, paid followers, trending mechanics, always-on content calendars et all emerged in this period. Amidst this the word ‘disruption’ and the consequent need for ‘transformation’ started gaining momentum. A lot of people across industries were angry. Many had spent decades learning the ropes of their business, and suddenly there was a new set of rules. But they weren’t set rules, the only thing you could be certain of is that things would keep changing. 2013-2016 – Bargaining Okay, we need digital… “But there’s no reach” “But print is more credible” “But we can solve the problem by hiring 1-2 millennials in house” To illustrate the sentiment of this period, a couple of us from our agency’s leadership featured in a leading publication’s ‘most admired agency leaders’ list alongside traditionally well-known faces. And instead of calls from other leaders congratulating us, we were asked in genuinely confused tones whether we had paid to be on it, so they could rationalize it. The ‘buts’ didn’t stop the advent of digital. HTML 5 made engaging interfaces available at scale across devices. Budgets grew and demand for digital talent skyrocketed. It became a 24*7 struggle to keep up with real-time marketing, constantly evolving platform algorithms and the mobile app ecosystem. Recognizing their gaps, holding companies got into M&amp;A mode and independent digital agencies around the world were quickly bought up. 2017-2018 – Depression Realization dawned that we were up against Google and Facebook as frenemies, as well as consultancies and tech companies like Accenture as competitors. It really sunk in when we saw a change of guard at many celebrated agencies, with revered talent making way for others if they hadn’t adapted. For individuals in the business, it was a wake-up call - upskill or soon be redundant. Marketers had smelt the coffee much earlier and had been training their teams for years. These well trained clients too were putting pressure on their agency partners to speak the language of modern marketing. The final punch in the gut was when a leading holding company merged two of their greatest legacy agency networks into digital brands, changing the face of the industry forever. 2019 – Acceptance This year was truly the coming of age for modern marketing practices. Creativity powered by technology was celebrated on the world’s biggest stages. OTT players and devices like the Amazon Firestick blurred the line between when that LED on your wall is a TV and when it is a screen. The reach argument in India was dealt a defining blow as the country crossed 500Mn people online. Many of them, who have difficulty interacting with screens and text, are using voice as their first interface. Others are driving up the demand for vernacular content. Fittingly, this year digital agencies such as ours grew to a scale comparable to many legacy agencies. And it is increasingly dawning on leaders in the industry that the time for distinction between digital and traditional capabilities has passed. Strategy and creative skills are still crucial. But they need to be coupled with data and technology to deliver the demands of marketing today and tomorrow. 2020 and beyond Voice, video and vernacular will scale as drivers of consumer engagement. Machine Learning algorithms fed by data will transform how things work internally for companies, as well as how they interact with their customers. Emerging technologies like blockchain will change the norms of transaction. New jobs like Data Security Specialists will be in demand. Many people have barely wrapped their heads around the digital disruption so far and feel exhausted thinking about another upskilling exercise. But continuous learning is the key to survival. For us, it could mean focusing on cracking a great idea and letting the machine take care of dynamic creative personalization. Formulating a brilliant media strategy and letting ML take care of optimum automated bidding and blockchain powered safe transactions. My belief is that to succeed in the 2020s, it won’t be about People Vs Machines, but rather how we best play together as People AND Machines. - By Amaresh Godbole, CEO, Digitas India

Digital marketing: A decade to acceptance

<ul><li>We bring to you a series of columns from industry experts, looking back at the last 10 years. The columns will explore how the media, marketing and <keyword id="34612" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="advertising-industry">advertising industry</keyword> has transformed in the last decade.</li><li>Last decade was full of ups and downs for the advertising industry. While a lot of things have changed, one thing has remained constant -- digital taking precedence in every aspect of the industry. </li><li>Ashish Bhasin, CEO - APAC and Chairman India, <keyword id="6368370" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="dentsu-aegis-network">Dentsu Aegis Network</keyword> Asia Pacific, commemorates how important this advent of digital media was for the advertising world, advertisements that stood out in the clutter, things that industry should have done differently, and trends to look forward to in 2020. </li></ul> The biggest, most noticeable trend in the last 10 years has been the advent of mobile along with digital and its impact, not just on advertising but overall on India's economic and social behavior. And if I had to pick one single biggest change in the last 10 years, it would be in the area of mobile and digital. It has spawned a completely new set of skills, a new set of requirements, a new pace, and that has happened in a young country where our average age is sub 27 years. Digital adaptability has really amazed us, particularly because the data prices fell, accessibility to smartphones became easier as they became cheaper. So, there's been a digital revolution in the last 10 years and not just advertising but consumer behavior has changed too. A lot of shopping is now done through e-commerce; if you're booking your movie tickets you will book digitally, banking has moved to digital too. Digital and mobile have permeated the day-to-day lives and behaviour of the consumer. However, in the bargain, the consumer today is also leaving a huge digital footprint in the form of data and therefore, the ability to handle data and data analytics has gained tremendous prominence. So, if I had to pick one area of change, I think I would pick this. One ad that stood out in the decade: 'Har ek friend zaroori hota hai' by Airtel was an ad that stood out for me because it encapsulated the best of both worlds. In some ways, it was representative of the digital era which is about mobile and telecommunication. And yet, at the same time, it held the value of social connection, friendship and touching human emotion. While everything else around us has changed, including advertising, the one thing which has not changed and hopefully will not change at least in my working life, is human emotions. We still laugh. We still cry. We still find something funny and something else sad and that ad captured both the progress of India and the human emotions very well. One thing that the Industry should have done differently: We should have paid a lot more attention on developing talent. Everybody did lip-service to it but most of our focus was to poach from one agency to the another. However, we did not invest enough on creating high quality talent and pivoting old talent to new skills. Trend to look forward to in 2020 Voice and performance will gain much more prominence than they did so far in the industry. With the emergence of OTT and data rates going down, there is a natural preference towards digitisation amongst younger audience. Equally, voice is so intuitive, it will be naturally driven more and more on a daily basis -- whether you are driving or use some voice assistant on your phone, which will be simplified with time. On the other hand, clients are also under-pressure to deliver results every quarter, hence, they will be far more interested in performance rather than just pure brand-building. - By Ashish Bhasin, CEO - APAC and Chairman India, Dentsu Aegis Network Asia Pacific

DAN’s Ashish Bhasin reflects on the decade that went by and how digitalisation shaped the advertising industry

New Delhi, Feb 23 () Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the international community has a unique opportunity to design a new international tax system to handle the challenges of digitalisation with a cost-efficient dispute prevention mechanism. She called upon the G20 countries to ensure that the consensus solution being developed by G20/inclusive framework for addressing tax challenges arising from digitalisation is truly inclusive, according to tweets by the finance ministry. The finance minister emphasised on the need for a closer collaboration between revenue agencies to investigate tax affairs of offenders who cross-borders for escaping tax investigation, a tweet said. During the second day of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Riyadh, Sitharaman highlighted the efforts undertaken by the Government of India to deepen the corporate bond market, such as removal of capital controls for identified categories of government securities (G-Secs) and increased Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) limit on the corporate bond market. The finance minister said she looked forward to continued engagement with G20 on this agenda. According to the tweets, Sitharaman explained the steps being taken to reform the credit default swap market, changing the method of buying and selling bonds electronically through exchanges, and facilitating on-tap issuances for all, among others, for further enabling greater investments in India's bond market. Speaking during the session on infrastructure investment, Sitharaman welcomed the efforts underway in G20 to develop infrastructure technology -- the InfraTech Agenda. However, she also cautioned that G20 should refrain from developing any common prescriptive approach since various countries are at varied stages of adoption of technology in infrastructure, according to the tweets. The minister highlighted successful Indian experience in the area of adoption of technology in infrastructure such as FASTags. She also pointed out the efforts being taken for installation of smart energy meters across India to reduce revenue leakages. DP SR HRS

'Global community has opportunity to design new int'l taxation to handle digitalisation challenges'

<ul><li><keyword id="19912297" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="NVIDIA" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="NVIDIA" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="NVIDIA">NVIDIA</keyword> and <keyword id="19896380" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Reliance-Industries" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Reliance Industries" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Reliance Industries">Reliance Industries</keyword> have partnered to build AI computing infrastructure.</li><li>NVIDIA will also supply the latest Blackwell AI chip for Reliance Industries’ new data centre.</li><li>The partnership was announced at the NVIDIA AI Summit India.</li></ul> <keyword id="16173150" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="NVIDIA-CEO-Jensen-Huang" source="Orion">NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang</keyword> at the NVIDIA AI Summit India announced a partnership with Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries to an artificial intelligence (AI) computing infrastructure and an innovation centre in India. As part of the partnership between the two companies, Reliance Industries will use the latest Nvidia Blackwell AI chip for its new major data centre. The company will use NVIDIA's cutting-edge technology, including the GB200 GPUs. The two companies are aiming to accelerate India's transformation into a global AI powerhouse with the partnership, banking on the nation's talent pool and growing digital infrastructure. "India is already world-class in designing chips, Nvidia's are designed here in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune. A third of Nvidia is Indian, maybe more," Huang said. While praising the country’s rapid digitalisation in recent years and talking about the country’s potential in the AI sector, Huang said, “Very few countries have this amazing natural resource called IT and computer science expertise.” "We are at the doorsteps of the new intelligence age. India will be one of the biggest intelligence markets. It's not just our aspiration, but also the raw gene power which will help drive intelligence,” said Reliance Industries chairman <keyword id="19916798" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mukesh-Ambani" source="keywords">Mukesh Ambani</keyword>. "India will not just deliver CEOs to world, but also AI services. Like we did with data, in few years from now we can surprise the world with what Indians can achieve in intelligence," Ambani added. Ambani revealed the company’s plans to establish a scalable infrastructure capable of expanding beyond 1 gigawatt, powered by green energy. "We are building this so we can scale, and we think big," he said. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/deepak-builders-ipo-allotment-how-to-check-allotment-ipo-gmp-listing-date-and-more/articleshow/114533208.cms">Deepak Builders IPO allotment – How to check allotment, IPO GMP, listing date and more</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/synology-introduces-new-enterprise-solutions-reports-significant-growth-in-india/articleshow/114504353.cms">Synology introduces new enterprise solutions, reports significant growth in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/diwali-gift-zomato-platform-fee-increased-to-rs-10-ahead-of-the-festive-season/articleshow/114493617.cms">Diwali gift from Zomato – Platform fee increased to ₹10 ahead of the festive season</a>

NVIDIA and Reliance Industries to build AI computing infrastructure in India

PRNewswire—Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], July 19: <keyword id="1606194" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Aereo" source="Orion">Aereo</keyword>, India's leading <keyword id="22468617" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="drone-based-business-intelligence" source="Orion">drone-based business intelligence</keyword> provider, has successfully closed a <keyword id="22468616" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="USD-15-million" source="Orion">USD 15 million</keyword> <keyword id="1095983" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Series-B-funding" source="Orion">Series B funding</keyword> round led by 360 ONE Asset. The round saw participation from long-standing investors StartupXseed Ventures and Navam Capital. Aereo delivers <keyword id="20829411" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="business-intelligence" source="keywords">business intelligence</keyword> solutions to help manage large capital assets using proprietary drones and an AI-powered data analytics platform. Their sector-specific solutions cater to mining, infrastructure, urban and rural development, land records, and other industries translating into a 400% revenue growth in the last two years and market dominance. Vipul Singh, co-founder and CEO of Aereo, stated, "This funding milestone enables us to expand our <keyword id="22468614" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="aerial-intelligence" source="keywords">aerial intelligence</keyword> solutions for capital asset management. With our proprietary drone tech and 360 ONE Asset's partnership, we aim to revolutionise this $10 billion industry and create a global footprint." <keyword id="22468618" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Suhas-Banshiwala" source="Orion">Suhas Banshiwala</keyword>, co-founder and CTO of Aereo, stated, "Our vision is to continuously innovate drone manufacturing and data analytics for the greater good. We are excited about the confidence our customers and shareholders have shown and are gearing up for an orbital shift." Aereo has been recognised by the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) as one of the top three infra-tech organisations. As a technology partner for Coal India Limited's Digicoal initiative, Aereo provides critical business intelligence for some of the world's largest coal mines for improving productivity, efficiency, safety, and environmental compliance. It has also been empanelled with Tata Steel since 2019, aiding the digitalisation of over 27 critical mines and stockyards. Over the past three years, Aereo has achieved significant milestones, including mapping over 45,000 villages under the SVAMITVA scheme and covering more than 50,000 sq. km of land area for the Digital India Land Record Modernisation Program (DILRMP). The Series B investment serves as a powerful catalyst for Aereo's growth, with a key focus on automation. Their AI-powered drone data analytics platform is set to revolutionise automation and digitisation. With strategic partnerships, R&amp;D, and new product development, Aereo is ready to lead the global <keyword id="22468613" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="drone-solutions" source="keywords">drone solutions</keyword> sector. Karan Ahuja, Fund Manager at 360 ONE, remarked, "We're thrilled with the momentum in the <keyword id="22468615" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="commercial-drone" source="keywords">commercial drone</keyword> tech sector in India. Our partnership with Aereo reflects our belief in their cutting-edge innovations, and we're excited for their solutions to go global." Ravi Thakur, Co-Founding Partner at StartupXseed, added, "Aereo has been a trailblazer from the start, delivering exceptional solutions and building the drone ecosystem. We're excited to support them in their next major growth phase."

Aereo, India's leading commercial drone solutions startup, secures USD 15 million in Series B funding round

<keyword id="22865833" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="online-vendors" source="keywords">Online vendors</keyword> have generated 15.8 million <keyword id="19914922" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="jobs" source="keywords">jobs</keyword> in <keyword id="19895063" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="India" source="keywords">India</keyword>, including 3.5 million for women, with about 1.76 million retail enterprises participating in <keyword id="19990771" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="e-commerce" source="keywords">e-commerce</keyword> activity, says a report released on Wednesday. The report 'Assessing the Net Impact of e-Commerce on <keyword id="19898684" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="employment" source="keywords">Employment</keyword> and Consumer Welfare in India' was launched by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. "Plugging in data from our survey, we estimate that online vendors generate 15.8 million jobs, including 3.5 million jobs for women," the report prepared by Pahle India Foundation (PIF), a Delhi-based policy research institute, said. E-commerce, according to the report, has been a key driver of employment generation In India. On an average, online vendors employ 54 per cent more people and almost twice the number of female employees, compared to offline vendors. The report noted that two of the most widely-recognised contributions of e-commerce penetration in the retail sector are --growth in employment and improvements in consumer welfare. It said rather than displacing physical markets, e-commerce is expanding into new territories like tier 3 cities. "Our data shows that a higher percentage of Tier 3 city consumers spend more than Rs 5,000 per month on online shopping as compared to consumers from bigger cities," it said, adding this is the India consumption story, which enables the co-existence of physical and digital retail. The study analysed the impact e-commerce has had on employment and consumer welfare through a pan-India survey of 2,062 online vendors, 2,031 offline vendors, and 8,209 consumers of products from e-commerce websites across 35 cities in 20 states and UTs. According to the report, each e-commerce vendor on an average employs about 9 people, of which 2 are female, while each offline vendor employs about 6 people, of which only 1 is female. It pointed out that there was increase in employment across skill levels, including high-skilled (management, marketing), medium-skilled (customer service, operations), and low-skilled (warehousing, logistics, delivery) functions. The report said that the growth of e-commerce and accompanying digitalisation have fundamentally changed the skill sets and roles required in the industry. "Vendors have experienced improved business performance parameters since listing online, including higher sales and profits," it said. According to the report, 60 per cent and 52 per cent of vendors, respectively, state that their sales and profits have increased since the time they have started selling online. "Overall, more than two thirds of the online vendors interviewed experienced an increase in online sales value and profits in the past year," the report said, adding that 58 per cent saw an increase in both. Barring costs, it said vendors have seen a positive shift in all other aspects of business performance since they started selling online. The report said there is a strong business case for offline vendors to list on e-commerce platforms or pursue an omni-channel strategy. "E-commerce integration has accrued significant benefits to vendors from smaller cities and micro-enterprises," it said. The study also delves into how e-commerce has reshaped consumer behaviour, noting that consumers have shifted to online shopping for reasons that include convenience, product variety, and access. "A highly engaged consumer base is indicated by the fact that more than 50 per cent of all respondents to the survey spent more than two hours on e-commerce platforms a week, and that 70 per cent made a purchase via e-commerce in the last month alone," it said. Speaking at the event, former NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar said, e-commerce has revolutionized India's retail landscape. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation(MoSPI) secretary Saurabh Garg lauded the government's initiatives expanding digital public infrastructure that have enabled the smooth expansion of e-commerce. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/reliance-jio-and-airtel-gained-over-3-million-subscribers-in-june-vi-lost-nearly-a-million/articleshow/112670406.cms">Reliance Jio and Airtel gained over 3 million subscribers in June, Vi lost nearly a million</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/the-iphone-pro-models-will-be-made-in-india-for-the-first-time-this-year/articleshow/112653019.cms">The iPhone Pro models will be made in India for the first time this year</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/webstories/orient-technologies-ipo-price-band-to-risk-factors-all-you-need-to-know/slidelist/112646237.cms">Orient Technologies IPO – Price band to risk factors, all you need to know</a>

Online vendors generated 15.8 million jobs in India: e-commerce report

New Delhi [India], May 20 (ANI): A recent Certified Practising Accountant (CPA) Australia survey has revealed an overwhelming optimism among <keyword id="21735155" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-small-businesses" source="keywords">Indian small businesses</keyword>, with 84 per cent anticipating continued growth in 2024, significantly surpassing the market average of 70 per cent. Despite global <keyword id="20413867" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="economic-uncertainties" source="keywords">economic uncertainties</keyword>, 80 per cent of Indian respondents remain confident about the local economy's prospects for 2024, well above the survey average of 65 per cent. This buoyant outlook has been on an upward trajectory since 2022, highlighting the resilience and dynamism of India's small business sector. <keyword id="21735156" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="CPA-Australia-survey" source="keywords">CPA Australia survey</keyword> showed a rise in the growth rate of Indian <keyword id="390673" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="small-businesses" source="Orion">small businesses</keyword> from 73 per cent in 2022 to 77 per cent in 2023--the highest since 2019. Indian small businesses are riding a wave of optimism and growth, according to <keyword id="21735157" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="CPA-Australia" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="CPA Australia" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="CPA Australia">CPA Australia</keyword>'s latest annual Asia-Pacific Small Business Survey. The survey reveals that over three-quarters of Indian small businesses reported growth in 2023, surpassing pre-pandemic levels and making India's small business sector one of the most dynamic and fastest-growing in the Asia-Pacific region. Prafulla Chhajed, a CPA member of CPA Australia in India, emphasized the critical role of Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (<keyword id="19910977" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="MSMEs" source="keywords">MSMEs</keyword>) in driving India's economic success. Chhajed said, "Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) are making a significant contribution to India's economic success. Not only is India's rapid economic growth and improving business environment boosting their confidence, support from the government ranging from digitalisation to access to funds, is assisting businesses to recover from the pandemic." He further said, "India's small businesses are enthusiastically improving their performance through innovation, adopting technologies, and building connections with overseas markets. 'Good staff' was nominated as the top positive factor that benefited India small business performance in 2023. It explains why Indian respondents have been so willing to add new employees over the past two years". "This year the pace in jobs creation by small businesses is expected to slow, although remain high in comparison to other markets. This is most likely due to a combination of factors including increasing levels of automation and rising labour costs," he added. However, Chhajed cautioned that the pace of job creation might slow down due to rising automation and labor costs, though it will still remain high compared to other markets. The survey highlighted several challenges faced by Indian small businesses, including increasing costs, competition, and cashflow difficulties. Staff and material costs were particularly detrimental in 2023, rising slightly from the previous year. To cope with these expenses and support growth, 68 per cent of small businesses sought external funding last year, though this figure dropped 20 percentage points from 2022. This year, 81 per cent plan to seek finance, despite tougher financing conditions. Only 42 per cent of respondents found it easy to secure funds in 2023, a sharp decline from 69 per cent in 2022. This trend is expected to continue, with just 43 per cent anticipating ease in accessing funds this year, down from 64 per cent previously. "Difficulty in accessing finance is a common challenge for small businesses worldwide. Though government loans like <keyword id="20151906" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pradhan-mantri-mudra-yojana" source="keywords">Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana</keyword> (PMMY) helps to foster entrepreneurship by offering financial support, MSMEs should not solely rely on borrowing to fund their long-term development, particularly in a high-interest rate environment", Chhajed explained. A significant number of Indian small businesses focused on managing costs and cash flow last year. Among the technologies they invested in, accounting software was particularly popular, with 23 per cent adoption. Professional advice was also sought frequently, with 34 per cent consulting accountants and 38 per cent seeking advice from friends and family. "Indian MSMEs are very competitive in many areas such as digitalisation and innovation, now they should focus on cost management and cashflow to increase their financial return. It's wise to use accounting software to control cost and analyse financial performance regularly. Further, financial experts like qualified accountants may provide professional advice to small businesses to manage technical issues like taxation and improve financial performance", Chhajed suggested. Indian small businesses also show a strong inclination towards innovation and global expansion. Leading the 11 surveyed markets, 34 per cent of respondents expect substantial revenue growth from overseas markets this year, significantly higher than the survey average of 19 per cent. Additionally, 44 per cent plan to introduce new products or services, compared to the market average of 29 per cent. Chhajed said, "The Indian government has established good platforms to bolster our MSMEs' global expansion, for example, international trade fairs for MSMEs. He added, "They could leverage these opportunities to connect with overseas customers and promote their novel products globally. Besides, our thriving digital economy also fosters MSMEs' innovation and revolution in the digital era." The survey gathered insights from 4,222 small businesses across 11 Asia-Pacific markets, including 505 respondents from India, providing a comprehensive overview of the region's small business landscape. (ANI)

84% of Indian small businesses anticipate robust growth in 2024: CPA Australia survey

As the <keyword id="19938590" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="NDA" source="keywords">NDA</keyword> is all set to form the government, <keyword id="19949381" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Fitch-Ratings" source="keywords">Fitch Ratings</keyword> on Thursday said <keyword id="21935526" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="coalition-politics" source="keywords">coalition politics</keyword> and a <keyword id="21957811" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="weakened-mandate" source="Orion">weakened mandate</keyword> could make it challenging to pass legislations on ambitious reforms. "We believe major reforms to land and labour laws will remain on the new government's agenda as it seeks to enhance India's manufacturing sector, but these have long been contentious and the NDA's weaker mandate will complicate their passage further. This could reduce the potential upside to India's medium-term growth prospects," <keyword id="19950093" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="fitch" source="keywords">Fitch</keyword> said in a statement. The <keyword id="19894848" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bjp" source="keywords">BJP</keyword> fell short of a single-party majority in the 543-seat lower house of parliament for the first time since its latest period in government that began in 2014. But Fitch expects it to secure enough support from allied parties in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to form a government with Narendra Modi remaining Prime Minister. The outcome should support broad policy continuity, with the government continuing to prioritise infrastructure capex, improvements to the business environment, and gradual fiscal consolidation, Fitch Ratings said. "However, coalition politics and a weakened mandate could make it challenging to pass legislation on the more ambitious parts of the <keyword id="21957445" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="government-reform" source="keywords">government reform</keyword> agenda," it said in a detailed note post the Lok Sabha election results which were announced late on Tuesday. The NDA appears set to retain power with a narrower majority after India's recent election, following a weaker performance by its dominant member, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). "We do not think that the government's losses at the ballot box will lead to substantial policy adjustments, but the post-election budget in July should provide greater clarity on its economic reform priorities and fiscal plans over the coming five years," Fitch said. It said implementation of <keyword id="20404815" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="economic-reforms" source="keywords">economic reforms</keyword> during the first two NDA terms was mixed, but some positive measures were passed including the Goods and Services Tax (GST) law and Bankruptcy Code in 2016. The government also increased public infrastructure investment significantly, helping to put India among the fastest-growing major economies in recent years, with real GDP growth reaching 8.2 per cent in the fiscal year ending March 2024 (FY24). Fitch expects growth to remain rapid at 7 per cent in current fiscal (April-March). "We expect India's medium-term growth performance to remain around our trend estimate of 6.2 per cent through FY28, despite the government's slimmer majority. The continued public capex drive to address infrastructure gaps, ongoing digitalisation efforts, and improved bank and corporate balance sheets - relative to the pre-pandemic situation - should facilitate a strong outlook for private investment," Fitch said. The rating agency expects the Production-Linked Incentives (PLI) scheme to remain intact, which will help attract FDI in target sectors, such as electronics. However, private investment has not yet accelerated meaningfully, which represents a risk for the outlook. Fitch believe land and labours laws reforms will continue to advance at the state level in some parts of the country. There is also some potential for judicial reforms that would look to lower costs and speed resolution of court cases. Weaker fiscal metrics relative to peers are a significant constraint for India's sovereign rating, which we affirmed at 'BBB-' with a Stable Outlook in January 2024. "The next government's ability to address high fiscal deficits and reduce debt will be important considerations for the rating in the next few years. "Sustained deficit reduction, particularly if underpinned by durable revenue-raising reforms, would be positive for India's sovereign rating fundamentals over the medium term," Fitch added. The government has improved its record on achieving deficit targets and has advanced fiscal consolidation gradually over the past few years. We expect this focus on gradual consolidation to broadly be sustained. The FY24 budget deficit came in at 5.6 per cent of GDP, below the revised budget estimate of 5.8 per cent (which matched Fitch's estimate). Fitch expects the 5.1 per cent deficit target for FY25 to be attained, and said government's goal of reducing the deficit to 4.5 per cent of GDP in FY26 appears increasingly achievable, although the election marginally increased risks of higher spending or slippage in capex to accommodate greater social spending.

Coalition politics, weakened mandate could make passing legislations on ambitious reforms challenging: Fitch

New Delhi, The government might look at enhancing the scrutiny of certain class of corporates, including in terms of <keyword id="19910870" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="kyc" source="keywords">KYC</keyword> requirements, as efforts continue to weed out unscrupulous elements and curb possible misdoings, according to a senior official. The matters related to KYC (Know Your Customer), including a simplified and uniform system, are still under discussion, and a committee headed by the finance secretary is looking into various aspects. The senior official on Monday said that various aspects related to having a uniform KYC are being discussed and in the case of the corporate affairs ministry, Permanent Account Number (<keyword id="19939397" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pan" source="keywords">PAN</keyword>) is being used for KYC requirements. The ministry is implementing the companies law and <keyword id="20735098" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="limited-liability-partnership" source="keywords">Limited Liability Partnership</keyword> (LLP) Act, among other legislations. Further, the official said enhanced KYC requirements might be explored for certain class of corporates. As many as 26,28,865 companies were registered in the country as on January 31, 2024, and out of the total, 16,65,438 companies, or 63 per cent were active, as per the latest official data. According to the data, a total number of 3,16,402 LLPs were active at the end of January this year. Meanwhile, the ministry-appointed panel is discussing possibilities of having a stricter regulatory regime for startups against the backdrop of instances of corporate governance concerns at some of the entities. The Company Law Committee (CLC), which was set up by the ministry in September 2019, is yet to firm its views and a final decision will be taken after receiving the panel's recommendations, the official said. Over a period of time, the ministry has been clamping down on entities, suspected of carrying out illegal activities. Last week, the <keyword id="20584362" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="financial-stability-and-development-council" source="keywords">Financial Stability and Development Council</keyword> (FSDC), chaired by Finance Minister <keyword id="19916618" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nirmala-sitharaman" source="keywords">Nirmala Sitharaman</keyword>, discussed strengthening inter-regulatory coordination in the financial sector to support inclusive economic growth. The council also deliberated on prescribing uniform KYC norms, inter-usability of KYC records across the financial sector, and simplification and digitalisation of the KYC process, among others.

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