SoftBank plans $550 mn investment in Lenskart, DailyHunt; Alibaba halts further investments in India

Japan-based SoftBank is likely to invest $400 million in the eye-wear retailer Lenskart and $150 million in Dailyhunt. Jack Ma-owned Alibaba wants to review its India strategy. 

SoftBank to invest in Lenskart, DailyHunt

Japanese conglomerate SoftBank Group plans to invest $400 million in the eye-wear retailer Lenskart and $150 million in Dailyhunt, through its Vision Fund, The Economic Times reported.

The Delhi-based eye-wear retailer will likely see a co-investor participating in the round and the company is expected to be valued at close to $1.5 billion, the report said. 

Dailyhunt, the local language content and news aggregation platform, is likely to raise $250 million in a funding round led by SoftBank. Private equity major Carlyle is likely to invest $100 million, the report said.

Alibaba halts further investments in India

China-based Alibaba Group Holdings is planning to review its India strategy, Mint reported.

The Jack Ma-led ecommerce giant has asked its investment team to manage the existing portfolio, the report said.

Alibaba’s investment portfolio in India includes payments firm Paytm and its ecommerce arm Paytm Mall, online food delivery startup Zomato, logistics firm Xpressbees, online grocery outlet BigBasket and online retailer Snapdeal.

Govt to ease norms for FDI in single-brand retail sector

The government will look into a proposal to ease the mandatory 30% local sourcing norms for foreign direct investment (FDI) in the single-brand retail sector, The Economic Times reported.

These retail firms might also be allowed to open online stores before setting up brick and mortar shops.

As of now, online sale by a single-brand retailer is only allowed to companies that own a physical outlet in the country.

TikTok to hold workshops for IIMC students

Short video sharing application TikTok, owned by Beijing-based tech company ByteDance, has partnered with the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) to train young media professionals on the challenges faced due to the evolving social media landscape in India.

“With increasing internet access, the way Indians consume news and information is changing rapidly. Through this academic partnership, we aim to train the next generation of media professionals about the various nuances of news and information consumption on digital platforms," said K.S.Dhatwalia, director general, IIMC. 

Under the deal, TikTok and IIMC will hold a series of workshops with the students and professors of IIMC across its six regional campuses, starting from August 26. The workshops will be implemented by Youth Ki Awaaz, an online youth community for social issues, the company added.