Testing Limits 👊
Paytm disappoints, Major deals, and A fintech scam.
🗓 Morning, folks 👋
📉 Mr. Market had a case of the terrible Tuesdays yesterday.
The Sensex dropped 1.6%, and the Nifty slid 1.3%, with renewed fears over interest rates and potential erratic tariff policies from the new Pres.
💡 Spotlight: Trump’s back, and India’s playing nice.
India has agreed to cooperate in the deportation of nearly 18,000 people illegally residing in the US, trying to win points with the aggressive America-first administration. The figure of illegal Indian natives could actually be much higher, officials will work to identify more cases.
For India, the play is simple: work to stay on Trump’s good side and dodge trade threats.
Let’s get through the big stories and leave you to better things.
1 Big Thing: Paytm disappoints 👎
Paytm's December quarter earnings painted a mixed picture, leaving investors pretty disappointed.
The company posted a net loss of ₹208 crore, better than expected, but still in the red with revenue falling 36% YoY to ₹1827.
Monthly transacting users rebounded to 7.2 crore in December, up from stagnation earlier in the year.
Mr. Market's reaction: despite these bright points all over, concerns over profitability and slower payment margins weighed on sentiment.
Shares of Paytm fell over 7% yesterday, closing at ₹845 — a far cry from its IPO price of ₹2,150.
Bottomline: Paytm’s strategy to scale its financial and merchant services revenue while controlling costs is showing promise. But, this is an impatient market that is simply looking for some scalable profitability, and for now, the verdict is a thumbs down.
2. Trump tests limits 👊
Donny took office and wasted no time diving headfirst into his "America First" agenda.
The deets: within hours, over 200 executive actions were signed, overturning key Biden-era policies and reinstating some of his most polarizing moves.
Among the headline-grabbing orders was a blanket pardon for 1,500 individuals tied to the January 6 Capitol assault and a 75-day delay on the TikTok ban, giving room for a potential sale or legal maneuvering.
Trump also pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Agreement and WHO, calling both "financial burdens" and accusing them of mismanagement.
Immigration took center stage: border wall construction resumed, cartels were labeled terrorist groups, and birthright citizenship for undocumented immigrants was abolished.
Zoom out: these sweeping changes signal a presidency determined to leave its mark, with potential legal showdowns and political clashes on the horizon.
3. Quick walk down venture lane 💰
UrbanClap, but in 10 mins.
Snabbit, an on-demand home services app, raised $5.5 million in Series A funding led by Elevation Capital, with participation from Nexus Venture Partners and others.
The company was founded just last year. Users can request professionals to help with household work, such as cleaning, laundry, and more, and are connected with trained professionals who arrive within 15 minutes. The company operates on a time-based pricing model.
Big trend: busy professionals in urban settings could particularly benefit from having instant access to help. But for the labor-heavy service to scale like quick commerce could be a tough ask.
4. Big daily movers 📈
1. Dixon Technologies shares plummeted 13.9% on Tuesday. This was their biggest single-day drop since January 2023.
Dixon Tech is an electronics manufacturing services (EMS) company that makes consumer electronics, lighting, and mobile phones.
While the mobile segment drives optimism, concerns over valuation and slowing growth in other segments are weighing on investor sentiment.
2. In the small cap space, South India dominant milk products maker Hatsun Agro Product (HAP) is acquiring Odisha-based Milk Mantra Dairy for ₹233 crore.
HAP is famously known for its milk brands like Arokya and many others.
With this acquisition, HAP will take over MMD’s ‘Milky Moo’ brand, which will give it a footing to expand operations into Western India, as far as West Bengal.
The Indian dairy market is expected to reach about ₹31 lakh crore by 2027.
Hatsun Agro Product’s stock didn’t react too positively, dipping 0.50% on Tuesday.
4. Major deals in focus 💰
Adani energy’s power bet
Adani Energy Solutions has bagged its largest order yet—a ₹25,000 crore contract for a transmission project
This 6,000 MW system will span 2,400 km, linking Rajasthan’s renewable energy zones to North India’s power grid.
The project bolsters Adani’s order book to ₹54,761 crore and expands its network to 25,778 km.
Stock dipped 2% to ₹808.9 on Tuesday, in line with broader market losses.
JSW’s $35B Push
JSW Group announced a $35B investment in Maharashtra to expand into EVs, batteries, steel, and green energy.
The agreement with the Maharashtra government was signed during Davos’ World Economic Forum.
The investment will create 10,000 jobs and set up EV and lithium-ion battery facilities, while also boosting steel production and renewable energy projects.
This move cements JSW’s focus on the energy transition and industrial growth.
Stock slipped 3.44% on Tuesday.
5. Chart of the day 📈
Government’s push towards clean energy has driven massive investments in solar capacity in India. Currently, the nation sits on nearly 100GW of solar power capacity, which is going up each day.
India is also home to the world’s largest solar farm — spread over 14,000 acres in Rajasthan, producing enough electricity to power 4.5 million homes.
What else are we snackin’ 🍿
📱Jio broking: Jio Financial entered the broking game with its new subsidiary, Jio BlackRock Broking.
🚫Scammed: Navi Technologies faced a ₹14 crore fraud last month as scammers exploited a system bug.
🫡Global Indians: Satya Nadella topped the Hurun’s inaugural list of Indian-origin leaders heading the world’s most valuable companies.
🚀Hypersonic leap: DRDO tested a scramjet combustor, advancing India's hypersonic missile tech with long-duration supersonic combustion capabilities.
That’s a wrap! Don’t let the weekday blues get to you.
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