Sip the Chai of Change: Google's Clash, BYJU's Fall, and Flipkart's Comeback!

Today, Google shakes the market by delisting desi apps, BYJU’s sea of sorrows gets deeper, Pocket FM tries to revolutionize the reading and writing scene, and Flipkart unveils its UPI handle, striking back with a vengeance post the bitter breakup with PhonePe. Read on for the steaming hot details!

Thukra ke mera pyaar: Flipkart to launch its own UPI after PhonePe drama

Remember when Flipkart and PhonePe parted ways, causing a lot of pain to Flipkart enthusiasts? Well, it seems like Flipkart is about to pull a UNO reverse on PhonePe and finally have its moment of “Thukra ke mera pyaar, Mera inteqaam dekhegi.” Flipkart's UPI aims provides its more than 500 million users with loyalty incentives like cashbacks, supercoins, and customized vouchers. According to a statement from the business, the UPI capability would make it easier for merchants to transact online and offline both inside and outside of the Flipkart site, as well as enable easy integration. It will clash with GPay, Amazon Pay, Paytm, and, obviously, it’s ex, PhonePe.

Read more here

Delisting Saga: The Government rushes to save Desi apps from Google’s Hafta scheme

The delisting saga is taking more twists and turns than expected. Recently, Google delisted a couple of Desi apps for not paying hafta to them. Twitter and LinkedIn were flooded with cries of help as the Government of India put its rescuer hat on and turned up to save the day. Thanks to the government, two of the most widely used job and real estate search apps in India, Naukri and 99acres, have returned to the Google Play Store. And for those of you spending evenings searching your life-partner, shaadi.com is also back on the play store. The impacted companies opposed Google's proposal to impose increased fee ranging from 11% to 26%. Now, we’ll have to wait and see what Google makes out of this decision and if, in the future, it wants to continue its dadagiri on such desi companies.

Read more here

Writers can finally make money? Pocket FM launches an online platform, Pocket Novel, for reading novels.

If you have a friend who mops over their story not earning enough money to get them through the night, then this might be a cue for them as Pocket FM launches an online platform, Pocket Novel, for reading novels, pledging a whopping $40 million investment. During the platform's testing phase, Pocket FM revealed that consumers read novels for more than 100 minutes every day. The most well-read categories were sci-fi, romance, fantasy, drama, and suspense. In addition to providing a platform for authors to produce and share stories, Pocket FM compensates writers for their work based on the effectiveness and engagement of their work. So, inform your writer friends, and do ask for a treat instead of a tribute poem in return.

Read more here

Sea of sorrows: BYJU’s continues to drown, without any sign of resuscitation.

Byju Raveendran, the founder of Byju, announced on Saturday that the edtech business will be unable to pay staff salaries since the funds generated through a rights issue are unavailable because of a legal disagreement with specific investors. Four significant investors, Prosus NV, Peak XV Partners, General Atlantic, and Sofina SA, have chosen to withhold money until Raveendran is removed and the board is reorganized. The stage is set for a compelling climax as BYJU’s navigates this rough part of its journey, with the company coming under the glare of increasing public scrutiny. Yet, only time will tell if the company will be able to tide over these rough waves of the corporate sea or if it will drown without any mercy.

Read more here

Fundraising News

1. Construction labor marketplace is in for an absolute Rock ‘n’ Roll show as Bandhoo, a construction technology firm, raises Rs 7.35Cr with the help of venture catalysts

   Source: VCWorld

2. Tech interview sector keeps growing without any hiccup. Revenue for Scaler Academy in FY23 increases fivefold at Rs 317 crore.

   Source: EconomicTimes

3. Smart Joules, a startup that develops energy-efficient technologies and presently helps hospitals and other commercial businesses manage their energy usage, raises $8 million in debt.

   Source: BusinessWorld

4. Fintech firm CredAble, which offers working capital finance to MSMEs, raised $10 million, from Equentia Natural Resources.

   Source: Entrackr

5. Newspace, a defense startup with a drone manufacturing focus, raises an astounding $52 mn, perhaps the largest equity raise for an Indian military startup.

   Source: Inc42