Top 10 biz headlines: Mudra loan limit, Budget 2019, Jet crisis, and more

From Mudra loan limit to pre-Budget meets, Business Standard brings you stories that made the headlines on Tuesday

RBI panel on MSMEs suggests Rs 20 lakh collateral-free loan under Mudra

A Reserve Bank of India (RBI) expert committee on micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) has recommended doubling the cap on collateral-free loans to Rs 20 lakh from the current Rs 10 lakh. This will be extended to borrowers falling under the Mudra scheme, self-help groups, and MSMEs, said a person privy to the development. READ ON...

PM Narendra Modi starts pre-Budget meets to brainstorm on economy
 

In the run-up to the Union Budget, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lined up a string of meetings spread across days. He began the exercise on Tuesday with a meeting of top bureaucrats in finance and other key ministries to finalise the government's priorities. The focus is clearly on reviving the economy and creating jobs, officials in the know said. READ ON...

Deloitte ban to disrupt businesses and investment inflows: US to India
 

The United States has told India that any move to ban Deloitte and other big auditing firms would disrupt businesses and investment inflows into the country. READ ON...

Paytm Money plans to raise $1.2 billion in a mega funding round
 

Paytm Money, the wholly-owned subsidiary of mobile wallet giant Paytm, is planning to raise as much as $1.2 billion in a mega funding round, said people in the know. According to them, the company is eyeing rapid expansion in the mutual fund (MF), insurance, and financial services space in 2019. READ ON...

Blackstone buys 'One BKC' building in Mumbai for Rs 2,600 crore
 

In the biggest office property deal in the country this year, US-based private equity fund manager Blackstone has bought about 650,000 square feet space in the One BKC building in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex for Rs 2,600 crore, said sources in the know. Blackstone has bought A Wing and some part of B Wing of the building, which has three wings with a total area of 1.5 million square feet. READ ON...

Dividend payout by BSE500 firms up 1.7%; share buyback rises 64% in FY19
 

Equity dividends by corporate India has hit a growth wall. The combined dividend payout by BSE500 firms was up just 1.7 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in FY19, growing at the slowest pace in three years. READ ON...

Truck makers unlikely to see demand revival as slowdown grips auto sector
 

The sharp dip in car sales is not news to R S Bhasin, managing director, Janta Roadways, who has had 130 out of his 200 trucks in Chennai lying idle owing to the severe contraction in the passenger vehicle market. His company draws the bulk of its business from transporting cars to dealerships. READ ON...

Airlines, private equity firms renew interest in grounded Jet Airways
 

Grounded Jet Airways, which has been dragged to the insolvency court, could now find a fresh line-up of suitors keen to strike a bargain. Airline companies and global private equity funds have begun exploring the feasibility of bidding for Jet through the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) route. READ ON...

No end to automobile sector's blues as lenders reduce exposure
 

Top lenders have decided to pare down their exposure to automobile dealers on account of increased defaults over the last two fiscal years, potentially delaying recovery in a sector struggling with weak demand, reports LiveMint.

Budget could set stage for a new-look Income-Tax Act
 

The long-pending overhaul of the country’s direct tax laws could finally gain traction later this year with the Goods and Services Tax (GST) now in place and the Union government sitting pretty with an overwhelming majority, reports BusinessLine.