Recent 6 months news in Business

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the acquisition of a 2.8% stake in Shriram Life Insurance Company Ltd (SLIC) by Sanlam Emerging Markets (Mauritius) Ltd (SEMM) through a preferential issue.

Additionally, the commission has approved the acquisition of a 29.06% stake in PUMA SE by Ancat Holding GmbH, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of ANTA, via a secondary share purchase.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), an arm of the World Bank Group, along with global investors, has committed $105 million to Hygenco Green Energies Pvt Ltd to accelerate green hydrogen development in India.

This marks the first direct green hydrogen investment in India for the IFC, Siemens, and Fullerton. The total funding includes $50 million from the IFC, $25 million from Siemens, and up to $30 million from Fullerton.

American investment firm GQG Partners has sold a 1.85% stake in GMR Airports Ltd (GAL) to Fidelity International Ltd (FIL) through Open Market Operations (OMOs) for ₹1,906 crore.

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has approved the incorporation of Mahindra Manulife Insurance Ltd (MMIL). It is a 50:50 life insurance joint venture between the Mahindra Group (India) and the Manulife Financial Corporation (MFC) (Canada).

The venture aims to provide AI-native and digitally-led insurance solutions across rural, semi-urban, and urban India, aligning with the vision of “Insurance for All”.

Japan-based SoftBank Group has divested a 3.25% stake in Lenskart Solutions through its affiliate SoftBank Vision Fund II (SVF II) Lightbulb (Cayman) Ltd. The transaction was executed through the sale of 5.65 crore shares.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) has secured a 10-year marine services contract worth $70 million (₹666 crore) for the first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) export project in Argentina.

The contract was awarded through competitive bidding to a consortium of Adani Harbour International FZCO and the Argentina-based Meridian Group. The services will be executed by Meridian Transportes Marítimos SA, a joint venture formed with a 51:49 equity split between the partners.

Hindustan Unilever Ltd has inaugurated the Unilever Fragrance Hub (UFH) at the IIT Bombay. This is the third such global facility for the company, after the ones in the UK and the USA.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has signed a multi-million dollar deal with Sweden-based SKF to deploy a next-generation Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) platform.

The partnership aims to leverage AI across Information Technology (IT) systems and business operations to enhance customer experience and support long-term growth. As part of the agreement, the former will provide end-to-end managed services, including applications, infrastructure, data management, end-user services, security, and connectivity for SKF operations globally.

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has notified the ‘Companies (Corporate Social Responsibility Policy) Amendment Rules, 2026’.

Under this, companies are permitted to channel up to 10% of their annual mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenditure into Zero Coupon Zero Principal (ZCZP) instruments listed on Social Stock Exchanges (SSEs). Companies must direct the remaining 90% of their CSR spending toward traditional community implementation routes.

The NPO issuing the ZCZPs is responsible for project execution and evaluation, and must complete the funded public welfare project within 3 succeeding financial years from the date of issue.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has become the first Global Systems Integrator (GSI) to partner with the France-based Mistral AI, an AI startup.

The collaboration aims to deliver advanced enterprise generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) solutions for clients worldwide. The former will use ‘Mistral Forge’ to develop custom enterprise AI models, allowing clients to integrate their specific data and context for better decision-making.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises has partnered with the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to broadcast 39 global football events in the Indian market.

The 8-year agreement includes coverage of major tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup 2026, FIFA World Cup 2030, and the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027, along with docu-series content.

Bajaj General Insurance Ltd (BGIL) has launched a next-generation health indemnity insurance plan named ‘My Health Care Plan Edge+’ (MHCP EDGE+), offering comprehensive coverage ranging from ₹5 lakh to ₹5 crore.

The MHCP EDGE+ is available for individuals from 3 months of age, featuring a policy tenure of up to 5 years, lifetime renewability, and flexible waiting period options.

The Government of India (GoI) has approved Roorkee-based Skymap Pharmaceuticals Private Ltd as the strategic buyer for the 100% disinvestment of Indian Medicines Pharmaceutical Corporation Ltd (IMPCL).

Established in July 1978, IMPCL is a profitable Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) that manufactures and distributes standardised Ayurvedic and Unani medicines.

Prudential plc, a UK-based insurer and asset manager, has announced plans to acquire a 75% stake in Bharti Life Insurance Company Ltd for an initial value of ₹3,500 crore ($389 million).

Under the transaction, the company will buy a 60% stake from Bharti Life Ventures Pvt Ltd and the remaining 15% stake from funds managed by 360 ONE Asset Management.

Google and Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, have announced a joint venture (JV) to establish an AI cloud infrastructure company. Blackstone has committed an initial equity investment of $5 billion for the venture. Benjamin Sloss has been appointed as the CEO of the newly formed company.

The USA-based Liberty Mutual Insurance Company (LMIC) has increased its stake in Liberty General Insurance (LGI) from 55.4% to 74%. LGI is a joint venture (JV) between the Liberty Mutual Group (LMG) and Enam Securities, with the latter holding the remaining 26% stake.

This expansion strengthens the presence of the company in the insurance sector of India, facilitated by the approval of 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the industry by the Government of India (GoI).

Adani Power has signed agreements to acquire a 24% stake in Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd (JPVL) and thermal assets from Jaiprakash Associates for ₹4,193.59 crore. The acquisition is part of a resolution plan approved by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and upheld by the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).

NLC India Ltd (NLCIL) has signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) with the France-based Electricite de France (EDF) to explore the development of nuclear power projects in India.

The collaboration focuses on the use of European Pressurised Reactor (EPR) and Small Modular Reactor (SMR) technologies. The EPR is a third-generation Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) developed by Framatome and EDF, featuring advanced safety and efficiency. It is to be noted that NLCIL aims to achieve a total power generation capacity of 20 GW by 2030.

L&T Energy Hydrocarbon Onshore, a division of Larsen & Toubro (L&T), has secured a contract valued between ₹2,500 crore and ₹5,000 crore from Bharat Coal Gasification and Chemicals Ltd (BCGCL) to develop a coal-to-ammonium nitrate project in Odisha.

BCGCL is a Joint Venture (JV) between Coal India Ltd (CIL) and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL). The project is designed to produce 2,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate per day, aiming to reduce import dependence and conserve foreign exchange.

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu laid the foundation stone for the Google Cloud India AI Hub in Tarluvada, Visakhapatnam. Valued at $15 billion (₹1.35 lakh crore), it is the largest single Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) project in India.

The facility will be managed by Raiden Infotech India Pvt Ltd (a subsidiary of Google) in collaboration with AdaniConneX (a Joint Venture (JV) between Adani Enterprises and EdgeConneX) and Nxtra by Airtel. The project will be completed over 5 years with a capacity of 1 gigawatt (GW), making it one of the largest AI focused data centers in India.