Latest Developments

Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

SBI ends land dispute with Telangana govt, to withdraw case

State Bank of India (SBI) and the Telangana government have settled the legal dispute over Raidurgam land in Hyderabad with the bank agreeing to withdraw its case filed against the government and accept allocation of an alternative site. The State government has also agreed to offer an additional plot in the upcoming Future City for a data centre to be set up by the bank. Senior officials of SBI and a team of officials from the state government led by Chief Secretary Ramakrishna Rao held talks on the matter on Saturday and entered into an agreement. Earlier this month, SBI secured a stay from the Telangana High Court on the auction of the land by the Telangana Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TGIIC) in Raidurgam here which had earlier allotted the property to the bank. This led to a confrontation between the State Government which examined the option of withdrawing its key financial transactions from SBI. An upset Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy took up the matter with the Finance Ministry and top leadership of SBI, according to sources. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

SBI ends land dispute with Telangana govt, to withdraw case
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

AP govt allots land to SAF One India SPKompact for SAF production facility in Kakinada

Andhra Pradesh Government has allotted 45 acres of land to SAF One India SPKompact Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of SAF One Energy Management Limited, Dubai, in Kakinada for establishing a Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Production Facility on long-term lease with investment ₹1,835 crore. The proposed facility is expected to generate 2,500 directed and indirect jobs. The State Investment Promotion Board (SIPB) recommended the proposal for allotment of approximately 45 acres of identified Andhra Pradesh Maritime Board (APMB) land at Kakinada to SAF One India SPKompact for establishment of a Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production facility, in accordance with the APMB Land Allotment Guidelines, 2026. Subsequently, on Saturday the State Government approved the allotment of land and execution of a long-term lease agreement by APMB in favour of the company for a period of 30 years, with lease rentals and other applicable charges levied as per the prevailing norms. The allotment on an “as-is-where-is” basis, subject to the company obtaining all requisite statutory approvals, clearances, and compliances from the competent authorities, according to the order. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

AP govt allots land to SAF One India SPKompact for SAF production facility in Kakinada
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

AP govt to issue bar licences at airports, except Tirupati

Andhra Pradesh government has issued an order on Saturday providing for the issuance of bar licences to the airports in the State. Following a proposal, the Group of Ministers had reviewed the comparative inter-State position covering the States of Maharashtra, Telangana, Karnataka, and Delhi T3, regarding operation of bar licences at airports, including the applicable licence fee structure, business hours, serving points and counters, etc. The Group of Ministers gave recommendations, based on which, the Director, Excise & Prohibition, submitted proposals for grant of bar licences to airports (except Tirupati Airport) along with justification and requested to issue guidelines. “After careful examination of the matter, the government has formulated the guidelines for grant of excise licences for airports (except Tirupati Airport),” the government order said. Further, it is decided to make amendments to AP Excise (Grant of Licence of Selling by Bar and Conditions of Licence) Rules 2025 to implement the policy guidelines issued in this regard, the GO added. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

AP govt to issue bar licences at airports, except Tirupati
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

India’s agristack moment: Building digital backbone of agriculture

In February 2026, the Government of Maharashtra disbursed over ₹14,000 crore in disaster relief for Kharif crop losses to 89 lakh farmers in just five days. The following month, in March 2026, the Chhattisgarh government successfully transacted MSP-based paddy procurement, covering over 32 lakh farmers in a single season. A few years ago, the sheer scale and velocity of such exercises would have been unthinkable in a sector traditionally defined by fragmentation - whether of land records, beneficiary data, or administrative workflows. Today, these milestones represent a powerful proof point for the effectiveness of the robust Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) rewriting the playbook for 21st-century Indian agriculture -AgriStack. This transformation follows the exact blueprint of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) revolution. Just as UPI decoupled banking from physical branches by building an open, public protocol, AgriStack is transforming India’s disconnected agri-economic landscape into an integrated digital ecosystem. The system connects three open, foundational registries onto one digital platform: · The Farmers’ Registry: A single, verified digital identity for every farmer. It is connected to their verified farmland plot records. · The Crop Sown Registry: A dynamic registry that accurately captures and maps exactly what crops are being grown and harvested each season. · Geo-Referenced Village Maps: A comprehensive database providing spatial data and precise boundary mapping for agricultural land, linking geographic realities directly to land ownership. Just like UPI made financial transactions instant and effortless, AgriStack is making it easier for farmers to get the support they need, right when they need it. Consequently, the impact of the platform will be significant in all aspects of a farmers’ business – from sowing crops to accessing financial aid to market linkages. Bridging the gap in agricultural credit through transparency: Historically, small and marginal farmers have faced a significant credit gap from Indian banking and financial institutions because securing a formal loan was plagued by administrative delay, collateral verification costs, and paperwork. The advent of AgriStack bridges the trust gap by linking the farmer registry to RBI’s Unified Lending Interface (ULI), thus providing a secure conduit for lenders to access a farmer’s consolidated data instantly. The real-time data clarity has not only collapsed transaction timelines from weeks to hours but also provided RBI the confidence to facilitate better financial assistance to farmers. For instance, the credit limit of collateral-free credit has been increased to ₹2 lakh per borrower under the Kisan Credit Card scheme. Verifying farmer claims in real time through traceability: Before the advent of Agristack, farmer credit was disbursed based on self-reported data, leading to misallocated funds or multiple loans taken out on the same piece of land. To address the issue, the Crop Sown Registry, powered by automated Digital Crop Surveys (DCS), gives lenders real-time, tamper-proof data at different stages of cultivation. The registry maintains a historical, plot-level record of key details, such as when, where, and what crops are planted in each cropping season. Banks can match loan amounts to exact crop acreage, lowering risks and preventing loan stacking, thus drastically lowering their risks. The government targets to cover all 30 crore farm plots in 604 districts in the country by the Kharif season 2026. Enabling trust through a single source of truth: For decades, rural data i.e. crop and land records were filled out by guesswork away from the field. By mapping paper records onto precise GPS coordinates of geo-referenced village maps, AgriStack establishes a geo-tagged digital fence around every farm plot. A surveyor cannot log a crop or upload a photo unless their live location physically matches the plot’s coordinates. By doing so, the platform has eliminated the scope for proxy reporting and data fabrication. To date, 5.4 lakh villages out of the country’s 6.75 lakh have been fully geo-referenced.

India’s agristack moment: Building digital backbone of agriculture
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Strides Pharma sells majority stake in arm Pivot Path for ₹100 cr

Strides Pharma Science Ltd on Saturday announced divestment of majority stake in its wholly-owned arm Pivot Path for ₹100 crore to a consortium of investors led by Ascent Capital, along with co-investor Vintage. The board of directors of the company, at its meeting held on June 27, 2026, has approved a strategic investment by a consortium led by Ascent Capital, along with co-investor Vintage Classic, in its wholly owned subsidiary, Pivot Path Pvt Ltd (Pivot Path), Strides Pharma Science Ltd , said in a regulatory filing. The proposed transaction comprises the sale of the majority stake by Strides to Ascent Capital and Vintage Classic for an aggregate consideration of ₹100 crore and the primary infusion of ₹50 crore into Pivot Path by Ascent Capital to accelerate the next phase of growth, it added. Strides will receive ₹75 crore at initial closing and ₹25 crore on the first anniversary of closing, it added. After the transaction, Strides will hold a 19.95 per cent stake in Pivot Path, while investors will hold 65.05 per cent with ESOP Pool at 15 per cent, the filing said. In a separate filing, Strides said the transaction values Pivot Path at ₹230 crore on a post-money basis. Pivot Path originated within Arco Lab Pvt Ltd, Strides' Global Capability Centre (GCC), where it developed capabilities across life sciences consulting, digital transformation, quality and compliance, and technology-enabled operational services, it said. "As the business enters its next phase, we believe this is the right time to bring in a strategic investment partner with the expertise and capital to accelerate its growth," Badree Komandur, MD & Group CEO of Strides, said. This transaction unlocks value for Strides, provides Pivot Path with the resources to scale independently, and allows Strides to retain meaningful participation in its future success, he added. Ascent Capital Managing Director & Founder Raja Kumar said, "Pivot Path brings deep domain expertise across the core, non-discretionary segments of the pharmaceutical industry, capabilities that have been rigorously honed within the Strides stable." As an Independent entity, Pivot Path is exceptionally well-positioned to combine the power of technology and Agentic-AI with its 400-plus subject matter experts in building purpose -built solutions that enable global customers to manage their compliance, digital transformation, and drug safety requirements with greater speed, precision, cost-effectiveness and confidence, he added. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Strides Pharma sells majority stake in arm Pivot Path for ₹100 cr
North America
CNBC Finance

UniQure to seek FDA approval for Huntington's disease gene therapy after previous clash with agency

UniQure plans to seek FDA approval of its experimental gene therapy for Huntington's disease, the company said Wednesday, months after previous agency leaders criticized the evidence backing the application. UniQure said the FDA in a recent meeting communicated that a three-year analysis from a Phase 1/2 study would support an accelerated approval of UniQure's gene therapy for Huntington's, a rare hereditary disease that gradually destroys nerve cells in the brain. As a result of the meeting, UniQure plans to submit its application to the FDA in the third quarter of this year. An FDA official confirmed that the agency and the company have agreed on a path for submission for a marketing application and accelerated approval of the therapy based on the existing clinical data. The FDA "remains committed to working with UniQure to identify a regulatory pathway that serves patients with Huntington's disease and their families, while upholding the agency's commitment to gold-standard science," the official said in a statement. The new FDA guidance represents a stunning reversal from March, when the regulator told Uniqure that its clinical trial data wouldn't support an application and publicly criticized the company. UniQure became a prime example in a series of reversals where companies said the FDA had changed its previous guidance, hitting rare disease drugmakers especially hard. Many of those decisions happened under former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, who left the agency in May. In a February interview with CNBC's Becky Quick, then-Commissioner Makary described UniQure's treatment without naming it, saying the agency was pressured to approve it even though it showed "no benefit." Then UniQure said the FDA couldn't agree that data from a clinical trial comparing UniQure's gene therapy to an external control are sufficient to support an application. A senior FDA official at the time confirmed to reporters that the FDA wanted UniQure to run a placebo-controlled trial to prove its therapy "actually helps people." The gene therapy is administered directly into the brain through an hours-long surgery, and UniQure has said it would be unethical to make people undergo a sham procedure. Instead, the company compared the progression of people who received the treatment to the typical progression of Huntington's disease using an outside database. Using that approach, UniQure's gene therapy slowed disease progression by 75% in a Phase 1/2 trial. With the FDA's blessing, UniQure now plans to use the same data that came under scrutiny to support its application. An accelerated approval would allow UniQure's treatment to come to market on the condition that the company prove the benefit in another study. UniQure on Wednesday said the FDA wants to align on that study's design, including comparing the treatment to the current standard of care rather than a sham procedure. UniQure said it's committed to conducting that study and expects to finalize those plans before submitting its application. UniQure isn't the only company to see its fortunes reverse following the departure of Makary and other senior leaders, including former Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research director Vinay Prasad and former Center for Drug Evaluation and Research director Tracy Beth Høeg. Replimune recently announced it would seek approval of its experimental melanoma drug for a third time. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

UniQure to seek FDA approval for Huntington's disease gene therapy after previous clash with agency
North America
CNBC Finance

Target, Walmart and Amazon among brands losing LGBTQ+ consumer spending, new survey says

LGBTQ+ consumers are shifting their brand loyalties based on companies' diversity, equity and inclusion policies, according to new research from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. The findings released Wednesday found that nearly 72% of LGBTQ+ consumers say they buy fewer products from companies they perceive as "reducing diversity and inclusion commitments." Nearly 70% also said they have refused purchases from those businesses at least some of the time. The five companies those respondents most frequently linked to reduced spending were Target, Walmart, Amazon, Chick-Fil-A and Home Depot. On the other hand, HRC's survey found nearly 70% of LGBTQ+ consumers are also rewarding companies they view as supportive of diversity and inclusion. Costco, Apple, Ben & Jerry's, Delta Air Lines and Kroger were the five companies most frequently cited as recipients of higher spending. "Consumers aren't asking the brand to be perfect they're asking them to be transparent and clear on where they stand," said Human Rights Campaign spokesman Jonathan Lovitz. "There is a gap to close between perception and what you're doing inside," he said. HRC's survey was conducted online from Sept. 29 through Oct. 27, among roughly 15,000 U.S. adults, including about 10,000 LGBTQ+ respondents and 5,000 non-LGBTQ+ respondents. The survey comes as a growing number of companies have scaled back diversity initiatives, modified public-facing DEI programs or ended participation in the organization's annual Corporate Equality Index. Earlier this year, HRC reported a sharp decline in participation in the index, a benchmark that has long measured workplace policies and benefits for LGBTQ+ employees. Participation among Fortune 500 companies fell 65% from 377 companies in 2025 to 131 in 2026. In response to the survey, Amazon told CNBC it is fostering opportunities for employees and serving a diverse customer base. "We've continued to support our employees with opportunities that allow them to grow, thrive and connect internally and in their communities," said a company spokesperson. U.S. shoppers have increasingly mobilized for or against companies based on their DEI policies. Target, for instance, has faced consumer backlash from both sides of the political spectrum over its approach and was the most cited company among survey respondents who said they reduced their spending. Self-identified Republicans reduced spending at Target during the summer of 2023 following controversy surrounding the retailer's Pride Month merchandise display, according to spending data from Consumer Edge. In early 2025, spending among self-identified Democrats also declined after the company rolled back several DEI initiatives.

Target, Walmart and Amazon among brands losing LGBTQ+ consumer spending, new survey says
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Only 14% of India's MSMEs have access to formal credit despite digital finance boom: Deloitte report

The report comes at a time when India is positioning its financial sector to support long-term economic expansion. Only 14 per cent of India's micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) have access to formal credit despite the country's rapid advances in digital finance, leaving millions of businesses dependent on informal lenders, according to Deloitte's State of Financial Services in India report. "Only 14 per cent of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) have access to formal credit, leaving the majority of these enterprises (mostly micro-enterprises) dependent on informal, usurious financing," the report said. It added that these are "not marginal shortfalls -- they are fundamental indicators of the critical need for deepening financial inclusion, and achieving broader economic growth." According to the Deloitte report, India's MSME credit gap was estimated at around ₹25 lakh crore as of March 2025. It noted that based on the sector's contribution to GDP and a healthy credit-to-GDP ratio, the formal credit gap could be "well over INR 50 lakh crore". The report comes at a time when India is positioning its financial sector to support long-term economic expansion. It noted that India remains one of the world's fastest-growing major economies and that achieving higher growth will require stronger financial inclusion and better access to credit for underserved businesses. Despite the credit gap, the report highlighted significant progress in financial access. Around 89 per cent of Indian adults now have a financial account, while the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) processes more than 20 billion transactions every month and accounts for nearly half of global real-time payment volumes. However, Deloitte cautioned that major gaps remain. About 16 per cent of bank accounts remain inactive, only 15 per cent of adults access formal credit compared with a global average of 24 per cent, and insurance penetration at 3.7 per cent of GDP is roughly half the global average. Calling for renewed policy focus, the report said structural bottlenecks continue to limit financial inclusion. "The need to scale cash-flow-based MSME lending through AA (Account Aggregator) framework (Credit should and can become ridiculously cheap and easy for every small business owner - the small supplier, the shopkeeper, the contractor, the artisan and various others)," it said while outlining reforms needed to improve credit delivery. The report added that addressing these structural challenges by improving credit access, expanding insurance coverage, strengthening financial literacy and narrowing digital access gaps will be critical to ensuring that financial inclusion translates into broader economic participation, financial resilience and sustainable growth. It said deeper inclusion across semi-urban, rural and underserved segments can also create new demand drivers for the economy while strengthening resilience against external shocks.

Only 14% of India's MSMEs have access to formal credit despite digital finance boom: Deloitte report
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

What could end the tech rally? Jefferies flags investment risks as China’s cheap AI models threaten US players

The report also flagged cybersecurity risks, citing a Five Eyes Alliance warning that “advances in AI could dramatically accelerate cyberattacks in the near future with organisations having only months to prepare.” The biggest risk to the AI-driven tech rally is not a sudden jump in semiconductor supply but a "sudden realisation by investors that the hyperscalers and the likes of OpenAI and Anthropic will not be able to make a return on their investment," according to latest research report by Jefferies. The brokerage argued that "for now at least, there remains zero sign of AI capex slowing," yet warns that funding concerns could "trigger a sudden unwillingness to fund these investments which will then be aggravated by the circular arrangements between the main players, such as Nvidia financing OpenAI to buy its chips." Jefferies' view comes as Hong Kong-listed Z.ai, formerly Zhipu AI, launched GLM-5.2 on 13 June. "GREED & fear is no expert but GREED & fear hears from more informed sources that this new model is almost equal to Anthropic as a competitor for the corporate market and is just one quarter of the cost in terms of cost per token," the report said. The launch coincides with what Jefferies calls a "reaction against tokenmaxxing" that is likely to "lead to a slowdown in Anthropic's uptil now remarkable revenue growth ahead of its planned IPO." Anthropic's annualised run-rate revenue "surged from $9 bn at the end of 2025 to $47 bn in May," Jefferies noted. The report highlights a shift in usage toward Chinese models. "Top Chinese AI models processed 21.37tn tokens on the global aggregator platform OpenRouter in the week ended 21 June, up from 4.37tn in late April, compared with 5.76tn tokens for the top US models," Jefferies said, citing weekly usage of the top nine models on OpenRouter. "GLM-5.2 proves enterprises no longer have to sacrifice intelligence for privacy. We are seeing a massive acceleration in companies pulling their AI workloads out of the public cloud and back onto local corporate servers," the brokerage quoted AI feedback it received. Despite token price pressure, Jefferies remains constructive on memory suppliers due to the Jevons Paradox. "Falling token prices should lead to rising DRAM prices," the report stated, adding that "the story that the DRAM industry has changed structurally... looks to GREED & fear an increasingly powerful argument." Hynix, Samsung Electronics and Micron are now trading at 7.8x, 6.8x and 9.2x consensus 12-month forward earnings, respectively. Reflecting this view, Jefferies is increasing tech hardware exposure across portfolios. "Hynix and Kioxia will be included in the global long-only portfolio with an initial 4 per cent weighting each... while the existing investment in Samsung Electronics will be increased by one percentage point," the report said. On Taiwan, Jefferies noted "boom-like conditions" with real GDP up 14.55 per cent y-o-y in 1Q26, "the fastest quarterly growth rate in nearly 48 years." TSMC capex is forecast to rise to $56 bn in 2026 and $65-70 bn in 2027, with AI expected to account for 31 per cent of TSMC's revenues this year. The report also flagged cybersecurity risks, citing a Five Eyes Alliance warning that "advances in AI could dramatically accelerate cyberattacks in the near future with organisations having only months to prepare."

What could end the tech rally? Jefferies flags investment risks as China’s cheap AI models threaten US players