Top 10 business headlines: ICICI Bank-Videocon case, Budget 2019, and more

Here are the top 10 business stories that made news on Thursday

CBI closes in on Chanda Kochhar, husband in ICICI Bank-Videocon loan case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has named ICICI Bank’s former managing director and chief executive officer (MD and CEO) Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar, along with his firms, as “accused” in the Rs 3,250-crore Videocon loan case. Read on...

Etihad wants to end exclusivity for JetPrivilege as part of rescue deal

Etihad Airways wants to open the JetPrivilege loyalty programme to other carriers as it negotiates fund infusion into the cash-strapped Mumbai-based airline. Jet’s loyalty programme is managed by Jet Privilege Private Limited (JPPL), a subsidiary company which is majority owned by Etihad. Click here to read.

Cognizant is hiring sociologists and anthropologists to read clients' minds

Cognizant is hiring anthropologists and sociologists on its payroll as it tries to broaden customer base with differentiated offerings. This comes after the Nasdaq-listed IT services company hired doctors and paramedics. Read on...

Piyush Goyal to hold meeting with PSB chiefs on Monday ahead of Budget

Coal and Railways Minister Piyush Goyal, who has been given additional charge of finance and corporate affairs for the second time in eight months, will on Monday meet the heads of the country’s state-owned bank for a review meeting. This will be his first major task in his second stint at the helm of affairs in the North Block, before he presents the interim Budget 2019-20 on February 1. Click here to read.

Coffee mogul VG Siddhartha, the businessman who brews fortunes

In the winter of 1993, when Infosys, now India’s second largest IT services company, was getting a cold response to its IPO on Dalal Street, it was V G Siddhartha who, apart from Vallabh Bhansali of Enam Securities and Morgan Stanley, underwrote a fair chunk of the float. It is another matter that Siddhartha didn’t hold on to his investment and divested quite early. With Mindtree, he doesn’t want history to repeat itself. Read on...

SBI's flagship scheme for resolution of stressed power assets is in a soup

The reluctance of lenders to approve resolution plans, the lack of a consensus over valuing stressed assets, and the paucity of cash-rich buyers are likely to push close to 15 power assets towards insolvency. Click here to read.

Linde India's delisting bid falls through, fails to match Sebi norms

The BOC Group’s plan to delist its domestic arm Linde India has fallen through. In a stock exchange notification on Thursday, Linde India said, “We wish to inform you that we have received a letter dated January 24, 2019, from the BOC Group, the acquirer, informing that it will publish the post delisting offer announcement on January 25, 2019, as required in accordance with Regulation 18 of the Delisting Regulations in relation to failure of the delisting offer in the newspapers.” Read on...

Govt may fix trade margins on expensive orphan, cancer drugs

The government may fix trade margins on so-called orphan drugs used to treat rare diseases, a health ministry official said, promising partial relief for patients burdened with exorbitant treatment costs. The move, if successful, could hurt multinational pharmaceutical companies such as Sanofi Genzyme, Pfizer and Shire USA, who make these drugs, according to a Livemint report.

Sub-Rs 10,000 smartphones may not be so popular anymore, says study

Demand for smartphones in the under Rs 10,000 segment—once the most popular—seems to be on the wane, according to The Economic Times report. User searches for devices in the segment have fallen to 23% of the total in the last quarter of 2018, from 34% in the first, a study by 91Mobiles showed.

Transport, power and renewable energy topped deal making in 2018

Transport, power and renewable energy dominated dealmaking during financial year 2017-2018 and will likely continue to do so in 2018-19 too, according to The Hindu BusinessLine report.