Ashwin Manikandan

While the world’s attention has moved to stablecoins, India is quietly chipping away at its CBDC. At least 10 pilot programs are underway to route welfare payments - climate aid to food subsidies - via CBDC. At the location of one such pilot, farmers said it helped them avoid upfront payments, merchants said it has improved demand, and officials said it helped in better targeting. A super story by @kalrajs23 and @AshwinM_ Read here: reuters.com/world/india/in…

India's digital currency push targets its leaky welfare system reuters.com/world/india/in… - In the western Indian village of Phulenagar, Samadhan Sonawane set up a drip irrigation system on his small onion farm using digital currency issued directly from the central bank - By @kalrajs23, @AshwinM_

The Mythos fear has hit Indian regulators. RBI is speaking to global central banks to understand the risks, while also seeking early access to Mythos to assess the India specific vulnerabilities. Reuters @AshwinM_ and @GopikaGopa report. reuters.com/sustainability…

India plans sovereign guarantees for insurers as Iran war heightens shipping risks, sources say reuters.com/sustainability… @Nikunj_Ohri @AshwinM_

Directly to the Premier League History Books. 𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐂 👏

Exclusive: Fintech Pine Labs to launch stablecoin payments outside India, CEO says. Expects to launch stablecoin-backed prepaid card in nine countries, by end-April. Reuters @AshwinM_ and @kalrajs23 report. reuters.com/sustainability…

Canada's Fairfax group, Emirates NBD, Kotak Mahindra Bank have submitted bids for India's IDBI Bank, sources say. It'll be interesting to see what kind of bids each has put in and who actually qualifies. Reuters story With @AshwinM_ @Nikunj_Ohri reuters.com/world/india/in…

Canada's Fairfax group, Emirates NBD, Kotak Mahindra Bank vie for India's IDBI Bank, sources tell Reuters. Reuters @GopikaGopa @AshwinM_ @Nikunj_Ohri report. reuters.com/world/india/in…

Exclusive: Leading South Korean insurers explore India entry. Reuters @AshwinM_ reports. Expecting lots of activity in insurance this year. reuters.com/world/asia-pac…

India's GIFT City attracts Lloyd's and other global reinsurers. Reuters @AshwinM_ and @jaysh88 report. Apart from tax concessions, home-country solvency rules draw reinsurers. reuters.com/sustainability…

India's central bank has put on hold plans to ask domestic lenders to disclose and manage risks from climate change. These disclosures norms have been finalised, but the RBI top mgmt believes this not priority at this point of time. 🔴The focus on climate risk has eroded globally since the re-election of U.S. President Donald Trump. 🔴Mismatch between RBI and India's market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on mandating reporting of climate risk @Reuters Scoop with @AshwinM_ reuters.com/sustainability…

India central bank defers plan to mandate climate risk disclosures by banks. The details have been under discussion for years now and banks were quite ready. But this is not seen as a priority right now. Scoop by Reuters @GopikaGopa and @AshwinM_ reuters.com/sustainability…

BREAKING @Reuters India antitrust probe finds Tata Steel, JSW Steel, SAIL and 25 others colluded on steel prices, according to a confidential order. The probe also holds 56 execs liable, including JSW’s Sajjan Jindal and Tata Steel CEO T.V. Narendran. It's the biggest steel industry case triggered in 2021. Companies face risk of hefty fines, though they can still contest the findings. tinyurl.com/3znm9wvb with @neha_5

Amazon, Flipkart take aim at India's lending market. Armed with massive data and now lending licences — directly and through subsidiaries — both will roll out consumer, merchant lending products. Will Indian lenders feel threatened? Reuters @AshwinM_ and @kalrajs23 report. reuters.com/business/finan…

Exports are down but not as sharply as feared. U.S. exports fell 8% YoY in October, rising marginally over September. Exporters say they have saved U.S. orders by offering discounts, while looking for newer markets, helping stave off the worst case scenario. For New Delhi, this offers some room to negotiate a deal closer to what they would like. Reuters @manojgulnar and @AshwinM_ report. Read here: reuters.com/world/india/re…

Woke up to @TheIndiaForum's newsletter in my mailbox with my article on it (alongside @CheriChe's fantastic take on Chettiars)! In it, I discuss with experts on India's newly evolved regulation for gene-edited crops, & its implications for smallholders, consumers & trade.

I wrote an article for @TheIndiaForum, interviewing leading scientists & critics to trace how India fast-tracked its approval of the world's first gene-edited CRISPR rice varieties by relaxing its GMO rules, a landmark step to accelerate the deployment of climate-resilient crops.

Flow state.

“SDM banungi” A class 10 student from a village in Madhya Pradesh wants to become a magistrate so she can fight for those displaced by the Sardar Sarovar Dam & who have been struggling to be heard for 40 years. Read @AmbikaSubash's #fieldnotes article14.substack.com/p/field-notes-…

India rolls out pilot for e-commerce payments via ChatGPT reuters.com/world/india/in…