What’s Brewing

Google, MeitY Startup Hub collaborate to help Indian startups build high-quality apps

Google and MeitY Startup Hub, an initiative of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), have partnered to launch Appscale Academy to help Indian startups build high-quality apps. Appscale Academy will focus on helping local early to mid-stage startups build and scale a range of world-class apps across domains, including gaming, healthcare, fintech, edtech, social impact, and others, a statement said. Indian not is home to one of the fastest-growing app user markets in the world, but is also hosts a vibrant ecosystem of startups and developers that are impacting millions of people in the country through their solutions, as well as has the potential to drive global app innovations. Applications for the Appscale Academy will be open till December 15, 2021. Out of the applicants, 100 startups will be selected based on defined qualitative and quantitative parameters by a panel of industry experts, members of MeitY Startup Hub, and Google Play. of this ecosystem and help them build sustainable and scalable global businesses.

India aims to become a trusted partner for electronics and semiconductor manufacturing worldwide: Rajeev Chandrasekhar

India is looking to become a preferred destination and trusted partner for electronics and semiconductors manufacturing following the Covid-19 pandemic which originated from China, and aims to become a prominent player in the $1.5 trillion semiconductor market worldwide, Minister of State for Electronics and IT (MeitY) Rajeev Chandrasekhar Thursday said. "Our electronics and semiconductors plans for the country are underway as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to make India a hub for the $1.5 trillion global market," Chandrasekhar said on the sidelines of India Internet Governance Forum (IIGF) curtain raiser event organised by MeitY and the National Internet Exchange of India. The lawmaker said that the department would enable companies to become champions in semiconductor and electronics systems designs so that they can compete globally, and a design competency could be developed. "We are also aiming to become a $1 trillion digital economy that will create new jobs, entrepreneurs and attract investments," Chandrasekhar said, adding that after Covid-19 pandemic, the world's behaviour had changed and countries were looking for a trusted partner in electronics and digital solutions while India could be that partner.

Union government planning semiconductor design-linked incentive policy

The government is planning to come up with a semiconductor design-linked incentive policy to promote domestic manufacturing as well as attract global electronic chip companies to the country, according to an official source. Global majors such as Qualcomm, Intel, Mediatek, Infineon, and Texas Instruments have their research and development in India which contribute in the development of their chipsets. "The government is deliberating on a new semiconductor design-linked incentive scheme which envisages financial and infrastructure support for Indian MSMEs and startups right through the ideation stage to the production stage. As and when these startups start producing and selling chips in the market, they shall also avail additional incentives under the scheme on their net sales turnover," an official source told PTI. Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar last week had said that the government would host a conference of semiconductor companies in November to discuss India's policy roadmap in the segment. "It is a great initiative that will leverage India's strength to make an impact in the field of design of semiconductors. We can target to have 25 plus fabless companies in the next few years which will make a substantial impact in the global semiconductor market," industry body IESA chairman Rajeev Khushu said.

Govt aims to make Karnataka hub for next breed of fabless startups to thrive: Minister

Karnataka Minister for Electronics, Information Technology and Biotechnology C N Ashwath Narayan on Thursday said the government aims to make the state the hub around which the next breed of Indian fabless startups can thrive. He said it also aims to propel the Electronics System Design & Manufacturing (ESDM) sector and support innovative domestic companies. ''ESDM sector in India, which is predicted to expand at a 16.1 per cent CAGR, presents a golden opportunity for Industries to Make In India for the world and fulfill the Atma Nirbhar Bharat initiatives,'' Narayan said. Speaking on the topic 'India�s Accelerated ESDM Growth - The Defining Decade' in the 16th edition of Indian Electronics & Semiconductor Association (IESA) Vision Summit- 2021 virtually, he said, ''ESDM sector in the country which is predicted to reach USD 220 billion by 2025 has the potential to create 1,000 start-ups, 10,000 IPs (Intellectual Properties), and 10 lakh jobs.'' Electronics production has the potential to generate around 1 crore jobs by 2050.

BharatPe raises Rs 100 cr in debt from MAS Financial

Fintech firm BharatPe on Monday said it has raised Rs 100 crore (about $14 million) in debt from MAS Financial Services. This is the eighth round of debt fund raiser for the company in 2021. BharatPe has raised over Rs 600 crore (about $84 million) in debt this calendar year, a statement said. BharatPe has raised Rs 500 crore in debt financing this year from venture debt funds (Alteria Capital, InnoVen Capital and Trifecta Capital), banks (ICICI Bank and Axis Bank), NBFCs (Northern Arc Capital) and wealth management companies (IIFL Wealth and Asset Management) in the earlier rounds. The company is on track to meet its debt raise targets for FY22, the statement said. Bharatpe had, in August, said it plans to raise $250 million in debt by the end of FY22.

HDFC Bank, MasterCard, others launch $100 mn credit facility for MSMEs

HDFC Bank, MasterCard, US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and US Agency for International Development (USAID) on Thursday launched a $100 million credit facility to encourage small businesses in India to digitize, while also helping Indian businesses, particularly those that are women-owned, to recover from the economic impacts of the pandemic. The new credit facility aims to expand lending to small businesses that need financing to maintain and grow their operations, and enable recovery through digitization, with an emphasis on supporting women-led businesses.