Connect with us

Business

Parliament approves bill to increase FDI in insurance sector to 74%

Published

on

(Asian News Hub) – A bill to increase foreign direct investment (FDI) in the insurance sector from 49 per cent to 74 per cent was approved by Parliament with the Lok Sabha giving green signal to the legislation by a voice vote on Monday.

Piloting the Bill, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that hiking the FDI limit in the insurance sector will help insurers to raise additional funds and tide over financial problems.

Advertisement

The Insurance (Amendment) Bill, 2021 was earlier passed by the Rajya Sabha last week.

The minister said that the government will provide funds to the public sector insurance companies but the private players will have to raise capital on their own.

Observing that insurance companies are facing solvency related issues, she said, “if growth capital is hard to come by, there will be a stress situation. In order that the stress situation is not left unattended, we need to raise the FDI limit.”

Advertisement

The Covid-19 pandemic, Sitharaman said, has further added to the woes of the insurance companies.

The minister further said that the FDI limit was being raised on the recommendations of the regulator IRDAI which had extensive consultations with stakeholders.

The FDI inflow in the insurance sector, the minister said, had increased significantly after the government decided to raise the cap from 26 per cent to 49 per cent in 2015.

Advertisement

As much as Rs 26,000 crore has come as FDI in the insurance sector since 2015, she said, adding the asset under management (AUM) in this sector has grown by 76 per cent during the last five years.

PTI

Advertisement
Advertisement

Business

Apple unveils iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max

Published

on

Apple unveils iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, featuring a strong and lightweight titanium design with new contoured edges, a new Action button, powerful camera upgrades, and A17 Pro for next-level performance and mobile gaming.

Also Read: Chaiwalas’ affection for ailing mother makes him role model for young generation

Advertisement

Apple on Tuesday evening debuted iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, designed with aerospace-grade titanium that’s strong yet lightweight to deliver Apple’s lightest Pro models ever.

The new design also features contoured edges and a customisable Action button, allowing users to personalise their iPhone experience. Powerful camera upgrades enable the equivalent of seven pro lenses with incredible image quality, including a more advanced 48MP Main camera system that now supports the new super-high-resolution 24MP default, the next generation of portraits with Focus and Depth Control, improvements to Night mode and Smart HDR, and an all-new 5x Telephoto camera exclusively on iPhone 15 Pro Max.

A17 Pro unlocks next-level gaming experiences and pro performance. The new USB‑C connector is supercharged with USB 3 speeds — up to 20x faster than USB 2 — and together with new video formats, enables powerful pro workflows that were not possible before.

Advertisement

iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max will be available in four stunning new finishes, including black titanium, white titanium, blue titanium, and natural titanium. Pre-orders begin Friday, September 15, with availability beginning Friday, September 22.

“This is the most pro lineup Apple have ever created, with a state-of-the-art titanium design, the best iPhone camera system yet that enables game-changing new workflows, and the A17 Pro chip, which ushers in a new chapter of performance and games never before seen on iPhone,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.

“iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max represent the best of Apple design and industry-first innovations to help enrich the everyday experiences of our users, while enabling them to unleash their creativity.”

Advertisement

Continue Reading

Business

Cathie Wood’s ARK invest files for first spot Ether ETF

Published

on

An exchange-traded fund (ETF) application was submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday by asset managers ARK Invest and 21Shares. The ETF would directly hold ether (ETH), coin telegraph reported.

Also Read: Bitcoin treads water below $26K

Advertisement

The Ark 21Shares Ethereum ETF is the first attempt to list such a fund in the U.S. that directly invests in ETH, the second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.

The fund would custody the assets with Coinbase (COIN) Custody Trust Company.

The news initially sent ether and bitcoin higher, but the rally proved short-lived and both cryptos have returned to prices seen ahead of the filing.
The filing follows a slew of applications for a much-coveted spot bitcoin ETF, including a joint attempt from Ark and 21Shares. The SEC last week delayed decision on all of those applications.
The filing also comes ahead of what’s expected to be SEC approval of the first futures-based ether ETF. A decision from the SEC is expected on or before mid-October.

Advertisement

The industry will likely push for more crypto ETFs, emboldened by trust issuer Grayscale’s recent court victory against the SEC, broker Bernstein said in a report last month. A spot ETH ETF will be a top contender, the report said, given its similar market structure to BTC with actively traded futures and spot markets on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), a key regulated marketplace for institutional investors.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Business

Bitcoin treads water below $26K

Published

on

Bitcoin continued its subdued start to the week, having traded below $26,000 for the past 24 hours. BTC held between $25,500 and $25,750 during the Asian trading session today.

Also Read: J&K bank launches Mpay delight +

Advertisement

The enthusiasm following last week’s ruling that the SEC must review its rejection of Grayscale Investments’ application to turn its bitcoin trust into an ETF has subsided, with other applications still kept waiting by the U.S. regulator. The broader crypto market remains in a similarly sideways trend, with the CoinDesk Market Index (CMI) down 0.42% in 24 hours.

Crypto derivatives platform Deribit saw trading volume increase 17% to $42 billion in August even as global activity declined by 12% to around $1.6 trillion.

The driving force behind the increase was Deribit’s options segment, with ETH options recording their highest volumes since March, Chief Commercial Officer Luuk Strijers told CoinDesk.

Advertisement

Bitcoin experienced significant price swings between $25,000 and $30,000, triggering massive liquidations in futures and options on the platform and boosting hedging demand for options contracts. Deribit controls nearly 90% of global crypto options activity.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending