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  • ⚡ Xiaomi Shakes Up App Stores, Ola Faces Trouble & More! (Mar 16)

⚡ Xiaomi Shakes Up App Stores, Ola Faces Trouble & More! (Mar 16)

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Masala Chai
March 16, 2025

Happy Sunday, sadly aka last day of the long weekend! 😔

Chill Breathe GIF by Pudgy Penguins

Holi gave us a much-needed break, and now it's time to soak up the last few hours of the long weekend before reality kicks in! So grab your chai, get cozy, and let’s dive into the biggest stories of the week. ☕🚀

⚡ Chai Shots

📊 Market Masala

  • 📉 Market’s Week Ahead: Outlook – After a 0.68% decline in Sensex and 0.69% drop in Nifty last week, investors are watching key technical levels. Realty, auto, and IT stocks faced selling pressure, while Bankex and Power saw gains. The next week’s direction depends on global cues and institutional inflows.

  • 📉 Gold ETFs See Profit Taking – Despite gold reaching record highs, investors cashed out, leading to a 47% drop in Gold ETF inflows in February. Some traders shifted focus to equities, taking advantage of market corrections.

  • 🏦 IndusInd Bank Stability Update – After revealing discrepancies in its derivatives portfolio, IndusInd Bank has assured depositors that it remains well-capitalized. The RBI has directed the bank to address concerns by March 31, 2025.

  • 🔍 BIS Raids Amazon & Flipkart Warehouses – The Bureau of Indian Standards seized large quantities of non-certified products from Amazon and Flipkart warehouses, targeting safety violations across multiple cities. Legal action is being initiated against sellers for failing to meet compliance requirements.

  • 📱 Xiaomi & PhonePe Tie-Up – Xiaomi will preinstall PhonePe’s Indus Appstore on its smartphones in India, replacing its own GetApps. This move strengthens India’s app ecosystem and challenges Google Play Store’s dominance.

🌍 Global Masala

  • 🔥 Trump’s Energy Policy Shift – The administration is reversing climate policies, pushing for expanded oil and gas drilling on federal lands. Officials argue that fossil fuels are key to economic growth, while environmentalists warn of long-term climate damage.

  • ⛽ Petronas & Sarawak’s Gas Dispute – Malaysia’s state-owned oil giant Petronas and Sarawak’s state-run energy firm Petros are at loggerheads over control of domestic gas distribution. Sarawak, home to over 60% of Malaysia’s natural gas reserves, wants more autonomy and revenue control. The deadlock has raised concerns over national energy policies, federal-state relations, and potential supply chain disruptions in the region.

  • 🌱 Standard Chartered’s €1B Social Bond – The bank’s first-ever social bond aims to fund sustainable projects, with 57% of the €1 billion raised allocated to India. It will provide financing for SMEs, infrastructure, and essential services like healthcare and education.

☕ The Big Brew 🎰 India’s Illegal Online Gambling Boom

  • 🎲 Explosive Growth – Digital gambling has surged in India, with 1.6 billion visits recorded in just three months. The boom is fueled by aggressive digital marketing, seamless payment processing, and mirror websites that bypass government bans.

  • 🔐 Regulatory Challenges – The government has blocked multiple platforms, but new gambling sites keep emerging, leveraging offshore servers to evade Indian regulations. The lack of a unified legal framework complicates enforcement.

  • 🌍 Lessons from Other Countries – Nations like the UK and Denmark have imposed strict advertising bans, heavy fines, and blocked financial transactions linked to illegal betting sites. India may need a similar multi-layered approach to tackle the issue.

What does this mean? Expect tighter regulations soon, as authorities crack down on illicit gambling networks, citing risks related to money laundering and illegal cash flows.

🚀 Startup Scoop

  • 💡 Zetwerk Delays IPO to 2027 – Despite earlier plans, the B2B manufacturing giant is pushing its IPO timeline, choosing to focus on electronics expansion as global supply chains shift toward India.

  • 🏆 Wonderchef’s Profitability Streak – The D2C kitchenware brand turned profitable in FY24, reporting ₹1.6 crore in net profit after posting a ₹51.8 crore loss in FY23. Growth was driven by a 20% rise in revenue.

  • 🤖 Y Combinator’s AI-Driven Growth – YC startups are growing at an unprecedented 10% per week, thanks to AI automation. Some companies are hitting $10 million in revenue with teams of just 10 people.

  • 💸 Purple Style Labs Crosses ₹500 Crore Revenue – The parent company of Pernia’s Pop-Up Shop grew its revenue by 36% in FY24, though losses widened to ₹45.7 crore. The company recently raised $40M in Series E funding.

🔮 What’s Brewing Next?

  • 🏦 Fed Meeting in Focus – The US Federal Reserve will announce its latest policy decision this week, with global markets looking for signals on potential interest rate cuts

☕ Chai Break Trivia

Did you know that Kozhikode, also known as Calicut, is called the 'City of Spices'? 🌶️ This coastal city in Kerala was once the epicenter of the global spice trade, attracting merchants from Arabia, China, and Europe for centuries.

It was so famous for its black pepper that Vasco da Gama landed here in 1498, marking the start of European trade with India! 😲

That’s all for today’s Masala Chai! Enjoy the last few hours of the long weekend, and stay tuned for more spicy updates next week! 🚀🔥

Nervous Happy Sunday GIF by Sappy Seals

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