In Brief: Amazon notifies SEBI of order barring Future-Reliance deal

Ecommerce platform Amazon on Friday reportedly notified the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) of the Singapore International Arbitration Center's (SIAC) interim order, which put on hold the Future Group’s Rs 24,713 crore asset sale to Reliance Retail. The notice has been sent to the regulator in a bid to ensure that it does not give unconditional approval to the deal until the final SIAC judgement is released, Livemint reported, citing two people familiar with the matter. SEBI is one of the authorities that has to clear the Future-Reliance deal, which, Amazon argues, violates the terms of the agreement it had in 2019 when it acquired a 49% stake in Future Coupons, an unlisted promoter entity, for Rs. 1,430 crore.

Joint parliamentary panel questions Google, Paytm

The joint parliamentary committee (JPC) on the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, has reportedly questioned technology firm Google and fintech firm Paytm over their business practices. Representatives from Google were questioned about its market dominance, the data it transfers outside the country, its self-regulation and misinformation-fighting efforts, a Livemint report said, citing people aware of the matter. On the other hand, Paytm officials were questioned over the quantum and nature of Chinese investments in the company and its involvement in sports betting. Both companies have been asked to submit written affidavits detailing their formal structure, financial interests, taxation, access to data and policies over data privacy and storage, it said.  

Paytm Payments Bank offers cashless payments at 211 toll plazas

Paytm Payments Bank on Friday said that it has enabled automatic cashless payments at 211 toll plazas across India, becoming the largest acquiring bank under the National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) programme. The company has equipped more than five million cars with Paytm-linked FASTags for digital toll collection and looks to double that number in the next three months, it said in a statement. The number of toll plazas acquired by Paytm Payments Bank for direct digital collection will also be increased by 100 during the same period, it said.

HPE Covid-19 test labs, OPD centres facilitate over 1,00,000 patient visits

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) said its test labs for Covid-19 and outpatient department (OPD) centres have collectively facilitated over 1,00,000 patient visits in India. The San Jose, California headquartered company has assisted central and state governments in the fight against Covid-19 by providing authorised testing solutions and isolation beds through 31 facilities.

Rapido launches operations in Mumbai

Ride-hailing startup Rapido on Friday said it has launched bike taxi services in Mumbai, offering rides at Rs 6 per kilometre. It has on-boarded 2,000 driver-partners in the financial capital, and looks to increase the number to two lakh in the next two years, a statement said.

EV manufacturer Okinawa partners with ZestMoney

Homegrown electric scooter manufacturer Okinawa Autotech has partnered with fintech startup ZestMoney to offer customers EMI financing options for its vehicles. The company said customers with or without a previous CIBIL score can use this facility, available online and across Okinawa dealerships.