Banking, Financial and Economic Awareness of 24, 25 and 26 July 2021

Topic: Corporates/Companies

1. Max Bupa Health Insurance rebrands itself as Niva Bupa Health Insurance.

• Max Bupa Health Insurance has rebranded itself as Niva Bupa Health Insurance.
• Max Bupa Health Insurance is supported by private equity firm True North and Bupa.
• In February 2019, Max India sold its stake to True North. True North now owns 55 %, while Bupa owns 44 % in Niva Bupa Health Insurance.
• Niva Bupa, Start Health and Allied Insurance, Care Health Insurance, Manipal Cigna Health Insurance, and Aditya Birla Health Insurance are pure-play health insurers in India.
• Niva Bupa aims to become a Rs 2,500 crore company by FY21-22. It is expecting to bring over 12 million people under the ambit of health insurance by FY25.

Topic: RBI

2. RBI plans on introducing Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in a phase-wise implementation strategy.

• According to the Deputy Governor of RBI, T Rabi Sankar, RBI plans on introducing Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in a phase-wise implementation strategy.
• According to Sankar, CBDC is being introduced in place of other private digital assets like cryptocurrency.
• According to Sankar, CBDC is a legal and legitimate form of virtual coin that will be on par with its real-world counterpart
• CBDC is a legal tender issued by the central bank. It has the same functional capabilities as a fiat currency and is considered exchangeable in nature. The only difference is that it is in digital form.
• CBDC is different from Bitcoin and Ethereum. They have no legal issuers. They cannot be considered as money or currency.
• Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) can be considered as money or currency.
• As per Sankar, RBI is currently looking at ways to launch the digital asset for general purposes on a mass population scale.
• For doing this, amendments would be required to sections such as sections 24, 25 and 26 of the RBI Act as well as to the Coinage Act of 2011.

Topic: Companies/Corporates

3. Government amends rules regarding incorporation of companies under Companies Act, 2013.

• Government has amended rules (Companies (Incorporation) Rules, 2014) regarding the incorporation of companies under the Companies Act, 2013.
• The changes in the Companies (Incorporation) Rules, 2014 will be effective from 1 September 2021.
• Changes have been introduced in relation to the allotment of a new name to an existing company under Section 16 of the Act.
• Section 16 is about the rectification of a company name. The government may direct changing a firm’s name if it is the same or resembles the name of an existing company. The company has to implement direction within 3 months.
• Under the new rules, the ‘ORDNC’ (Order of Regional Director Not Complied) tag would be attached to the name of the company that fails to comply with the direction within specified period.
• For such companies, letters ORDNC, the year of the passing of the direction, the serial number and the existing Corporate Identity Number (CIN) of the company will become the new name of company.
• In another notification, the Ministry has said that provisions of Section 4 of the Act would become effective from September 1, 2021. Section 4 is about the memorandum of companies.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

4. Centre signs MoU with five firms to develop proof of concept (PoC) or evidence based on the federated farm database.

• Centre has signed MoU with five firms to develop a proof of concept (PoC) or evidence based on the federated farm database.
• These firms include Microsoft India Pvt Ltd, Amazon Web Services, Star AgriBazaar and Patanjali Organic Research Institute.
• The PoCs will help in understanding solutions that can be built using available data.
• Government has entered MoU with Microsoft India Pvt Ltd for consolidating agri ecosystem across the value chain.
• ESRI India Technologies Ltd has entered into MoU for the establishment of ‘National Agriculture Geo Hub’.
• Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar said that the Department of Agriculture is in process of finalizing IDEA (India Digital Ecosystem of Agriculture).
• IDEA will form a framework for Agristack. Agristack is a collection of technology-based interventions in agriculture.

Topic: Indian Economy

5. Union Cabinet decides to increase FDI limit in public sector refineries up for disinvestment to 100 % through direct route.

• Union Cabinet has decided to increase the FDI limit in public sector refineries up for disinvestment to 100% through the direct route.
• The increase in FDI limit from 49% to 100% is only for oil PSUs that are to be disinvested. For the rest, there is no change in the FDI limit.
• The increase in FDI limit is likely to help in divesting the government’s stake in public sector oil refiner BPCL, which is the country’s second-largest refiner.
• Government has not made any official announcement on this decision taken at Cabinet meeting.
• Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is likely to officially notify the change in FDI rules later. DPIIT is the nodal department for policy on FDI.

Topic: Miscellaneous

6. Food Processing Ministry implementing scheme for setting up or upgradation of 2 lakh micro-food processing enterprises by 2025.

• Food Processing Ministry is implementing scheme for setting up or upgradation of 2 lakh micro-food processing enterprises by 2025.
• The scheme is a centrally sponsored scheme with an outlay of ₹10,000 crore. It is being implemented from 2020-21 to 2024-25.
• The scheme is named as PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme (PMFME).
• It provides financial, technical and business support for micro-food processing enterprises.
• Minister of State for Food Processing Prahlad Singh Patel said that Ministry has approved 41 mega food parks, 353 cold chain projects and others under Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana, which is being implemented since 2016-17.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

7. Indian Bank signs agreement with IIT-Guwahati’s centre for start-up financing.

• Indian Bank has signed an agreement with IIT-Guwahati Technology Incubation Centre (TIC).
• The bank has signed an agreement for financing start-ups under its loan product “IND Spring Board”.
• Indian Bank’s ‘Ind Spring Board’ scheme aims to empower start-ups to realise their research efforts powered by financial support from the bank.
• Under this product, the bank gives up start-ups ₹50 crore as working capital and fund-based term loan requirements for acquiring fixed assets.

Topic: Miscellaneous

8. Centre all set to approve setting up of BRICS’ New Development Bank’s Indian regional office at the GIFT SEZ IFSC in Gandhinagar.

• Centre is all set to approve setting up of BRICS’ New Development Bank’s Indian regional office at the GIFT SEZ IFSC in Gandhinagar.
• The proposal is scheduled to be taken up by the Board of Approval (BoA) for SEZs in a meeting later this month.
• The announcement of operationalisation of Indian regional office is expected to be made in the BRICS Lenders Summit to be held on September 9.

Topic: Banking System

9. Paisalo Digital selected by SBI as its National Corporate Business Correspondent.

• Paisalo Digital has been selected by SBI as its National Corporate Business Correspondent for financial inclusion by providing banking services through kiosks.
• Paisalo Digital will extend its services and its reach to the general public including its existing customers and new customers.
• Santanu Agarwal, Deputy CEO, Paisalo Digital said that coupled with Fully Digital SBI-Paisalo Loan Co-Origination Scheme, Paisalo will achieve its target of creating a seamless banking solution for India’s Bottom of Pyramid Population.
• Paisalo Digital Limited is a Systemically Important Non-Deposit taking NBFC registered with RBI.

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