Archive: January 6, 2023

Finolex Cables launches Crease Free Iron Range to enter domestic appliances market

New Delhi/Pune/ Hyderabad, January 06, 2023: Finolex Cables Limited, India’s leading manufacturer of electrical and communication cables announced today that it has entered the small domestic appliances market with the launch of Crease Free Iron Range across different consumer segments. With this, Finolex Cables will be extending its new product line over its strong retailer base.

In line with its aim of providing its customers with affordable yet built-to-last products, the state-of-the-art steam, and dry irons are designed for ease of use. The launch also aligns with Finolex Cables aim to be a customer-centric organization that delivers stress-free solutions to its consumers.

Speaking on the launch, Mr. Deepak K. Chhabria, Executive Chairman, of Finolex Cables Ltd. said, “Finolex Cables has been a leading company in the wires and cables segment, and is eager to provide total electrical solutions to its customers. We have identified the small domestic appliances category as a growth opportunity. Our aim is to deliver products that can help our customers lead a convenient, hassle-free life, and give them a unique exposure to our brand while directly experiencing all that it represents.”

Finolex has earlier also expanded into the electrical segment with Electric water heaters, fans, MCBs, Switches, and lighting products which have been well-received by the consumers. The company’s rapid and industry-leading growth has been the outcome of a well-formulated strategy for setting up modern, well-equipped plants along with regular capacity expansion in alignment with market requirements.

Mr. Amit Mathur, President – Sales & Marketing said, “We realize Irons are a competitive category and have therefore invested considerable time and resources in delivering a differentiated product that come with attractive designs, colours & advanced features. Positioned as ‘Crease Free Stress Free’, these Irons reinforce our ‘No Stress, Finolex’ campaign, which is currently being aired over TV channels, digital, & OOH. Distribution being key in the category, for the initial phase, we have identified 200 existing distributors who are keen to stock our range. Through these partners, we are expecting to have our irons available at 25,000 plus outlets. Over the coming year, the aim is to distribute it over 100,000 outlets nationwide.”

Fello Raises $4 Million to Bring Gamified Savings for the Indian Zillennials

January 06, 2023, Bengaluru: Fello, India’s first gamified savings platform, designed for the Gen-Zs and young millennials of India, has raised $4 million in their latest funding round led by US-based Courtside Ventures, with participation from, Entrepreneur First, Ycombinator, Kube Venture and Upsparks. Angel investors, Kunal Shah, Founder of Cred, Lalit Kishore, Co-founder of Groww, Charlie Songhurst, Dafeng and Alan Rutledge participated in this round. Previously, in November 2021, the company had raised $1 million in its seed round.

Fello will use the funding to develop unique gamified financial products, hire top talent across functions, and expand its user base to the many millions in the tier-1 and tier-2 cities of India.

Founded in 2021 by YCombinator W22 graduates, Manish Maryada and Shourya Lala, Fello has built a revolutionary product at the intersection of gaming and finance. The company aims to make finance fun and rewarding, thereby helping India’s youth build better financial health. The gamified savings platform incentivizes users through gaming to save and grow their money with returns higher than their traditional savings accounts. The company aims to on-board 5 million customers by the end of 2023 and enable the underbanked population of India through an innovative suite of products that gamify investing.

Commenting on the fundraiser, Manish Maryada, Co-founder, and CEO, of Fello, said, “We are thrilled to begin the New Year with a new round of funding through new and existing marquee investors. This reaffirms our vision of becoming India’s preferred ‘fun-ancial savings app’ that combines finance and gaming, thus inculcating and encouraging the habit of saving and investing among India’s youth. Presently, we have a user base of over 500,000, with 72% of customers coming to the platform organically, through referrals. We are confident that with our accelerated growth and expansion, we will be able to reach our target of 5 million users by December 2023.”

Shourya Lala, Co-founder, and CTO, Fello said, “We have seen massive tailwinds for our game-based savings model in the last one year. Of the 846 million internet users in India, nearly 433 million play games on their mobile phones, two or three times a week. Of this, 75% of internet users are between the age group of 18-30, and interestingly, they shy away from saving and investing. Fello’s market scope is unprecedented. With this fundraise; we aim to accelerate our product development, market penetration, and talent acquisition.”

Kai Bond, Partner of Courtside Ventures said, “India has attracted unprecedented investment in the last four years in the fintech and gaming sector. As a global game investor, Courtside Ventures has remained very active in the ecosystem. The Indian Gaming audience is one of the largest and most active markets in the world, yet financial services applications attract a fraction of that gaming audience. There is a tremendous market opportunity to bridge the gap in financial literacy and invest in a fun and gamified experience. We are incredibly bullish that there is a massive opportunity at the intersection of gaming and financial services in India.”

Matt Clifford, Co-founder, and CEO of Entrepreneur First said, “Entrepreneur First invested in Manish and Shourya as individuals, pre-idea because we recognized their extraordinary potential to build a world-leading company. In combining their talents to build Fello, they’ve made that potential a reality. As the team redefines finance for India’s next generation, we’ve been proud to back the team since its inception, and are so excited to see them hit yet another milestone with this raise. It’s founders like Fello’s that have motivated us to double down on our investment in India’s extraordinary talent pool, and we can’t wait to see what they do next”

Fello’s other investors include prominent names like Acequia Capital and independent investors Ashneer Grover, Ex-MD, BharatPe, Bala Parthasarathy, and Chairman, Freo, to name a few.

IndusOS statement on the NCLAT proceedings from yesterday

By Rakesh Deshmukh, Co-founder , CEO, Indus OS

In a major setback to Google, on January 04th, 2023 the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal refused to grant interim protection to Google with respect to CCI’s directions to cease and desist, in its appeal challenging the CCI order against the tech giant on 20th October 2022. NCLAT has also permitted Indus OS, MapmyIndia, and Alliance of Digital India Foundation, being aggrieved by the anti-competitive actions of Google, to physically file their impleadment applications before NLCAT.

Google was pressing for interim protection on 2 fronts; One against the penalty of INR 1337.76 Crores imposed by CCI and also against the direction issued by CCI to cease and desist from indulging in anti-competitive practices that have been found against Google. The tech giant has been directed by CCI to implement necessary changes in its practices and file a compliance report within 03 months of its order.

The CCI’s order for fair and competitive practices in the mobile industry lends a great deal of confidence to all the stakeholders. It is a shot in the arm for many companies in the ecosystem that have been affected adversely due to the monopolistic policies of Google, as they can now compete and build better products customized for India.

We at Indus OS have been patiently waiting and consistently fighting for this day for over a decade now. As an app store, we are delighted by the CCI decision to stop Google from restricting OEMs from partnering with other companies like IndusOS to distribute alternate app stores in India, thus providing Indian consumers with the freedom of choice to choose an app store of their liking on their own mobile phones.

This is only the beginning and our endeavor to create a level playing field for alternate app stores and bring competitive and Indian customized products for our users will continue with the same fervor and zeal as before.

Five Safety Tips to Keep in Mind When Travelling With a Ride-hailing App

By Pavit Nanda Anand

As we head into the new year, ride-hailing apps will see increased demand for rides as people plan their holidays and travel inter-city for family get-togethers. To ensure that people have a pleasant experience as they move around, here are some safety tips to consider when using ride-hailing apps.

Pick-Up location- While passengers wait for their driver to arrive, it is advisable to do so in a safe place, preferably inside the pick-up location, to avoid being a victim of cell phone snatching.

Ensure to verify the driver details – After confirming the trip, passengers must ensure that the vehicle, plate number and the driver match the details provided in the app. Should none of these details match, passengers should cancel the trip and provide feedback to the app’s support function. Upon receiving this type of feedback, apps can remove drivers and vehicles that violate the rules of the app.

Double-check the payment option – Most ride-hailing platforms offer various payment options so that each passenger can select a method that suits them best. Passengers are reminded to always ensure they selected the intended payment method. Should a passenger opt to pay with cash, it is essential to ensure they have enough money on them.

Accurate destination address – The destination included in the trip helps direct the driver as well as calculate the cost of the trip. Entering an incorrect address can inconvenience the driver, affecting where the journey ends. Inputting the correct address is vital, especially when requesting a ride for someone else. As this option is quite popular among users, adding an incorrect drop-off address can cause the passenger unnecessary anxiety.

Respect the driver and the cab – Passengers are encouraged to respect the driver and their vehicle by leaving the car the way it was during pick-up. Passengers can also share their route with their family and loved ones so that they can track their trip or estimate their ETA. The “share my trip” function lets anyone with a link track the trip in real time. Passengers are, of course, reminded to check if they had left any of their belongings when exiting the car.

Strengthening of the Commercial Real Estate sector in 2023

“Commercial Real Estate has remained steadfast with many large corporations- domestic and international brands making a great return to the workplace. The momentum to bring back the workforce had begun at the start of 2022, which continued to gather pace as the year progressed. On one hand, the post-pandemic phase took off to a promising start with office spaces filling up fast paving the way for the new normal. On the other hand, leading global asset management firms joined hands with established Indian realty players that kept the investment market busy. Heading into 2023, the overall picture for the Indian economy is looking extremely positive. In the year 2023, with overall expected growth, pick-up in job creation and ready-to-move-in housing will continue to drive demand. We are also expecting some rapid change in the workplaces, which means that it will also favour greater flexibility. All these factors are expected to drive demand for A-Grade office space. As captured by a leading industry consultant in its report, the market for A-Grade space is expected to touch 1.2 billion sq. ft. by 2030 buoyed by consistent demand. Another significant observation made by such a report opines that in the metro and non-metro cities, the adoption of office space will breach the 60 million sq. ft. mark by 2023. With companies taking significant steps toward sustainability, they are increasingly on the lookout for commercial spaces that align with their sensibilities. Taking this into consideration, certain established players are addressing this growing need of sustainable structures. At SATTVA, we are at the forefront of building commercial spaces that meet the highest standards of sustainability, where all our buildings come with LEED certification. Right from our futuristic tech park SATTVA Knowledge City, which is touted to be Asia’s best tech park to many more, which is home to fortune 500 companies to homegrown tech giants.” –Mr. Bijay Agarwal, MD, Sattva Group.