Shiprocket plans to allocate a significant portion of its IPO proceeds towards artificial intelligence (AI), aiming to evolve its e-commerce enablement platform into a comprehensive operating system for merchants, enabling conversational commands and reducing manual tasks.
The biggest challenge to widespread deployment is no longer AI. It is the financial and commerce infrastructure that was built decades ago for deterministic software and human interactions -- not autonomous AI agents.
'GenZ today is close to 45 to 50 per cent of the overall shopping journeys in the country. They are also very content-first in terms of entertainment or otherwise, general gratification of content and discovery.'
Food and grocery delivery giant Swiggy has reported a significant narrowing of its net loss in the first quarter, down 34 per cent year-on-year to approximately 791 crore, while revenue from operations surged by 37 per cent to 6,812 crore. The company also achieved contribution margin break-even in its quick commerce segment, Instamart.
Indian crypto exchanges and companies have expressed strong support for the Central Board of Direct Taxes' (CBDT) new Crypto Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), which mandates reporting and due-diligence obligations for crypto service providers on all transactions starting 2026.
The aim is to win over the country's enterprises, developers and startups as AI systems shift from answering questions to autonomously executing tasks.
'The order has no practical effect unless and until he chooses to enter Singapore.'
'...A new challenge has emerged in the form of Mythos.'
Dark patterns are no longer just a consumer protection concern, but a broader macroeconomic challenge affecting the long-term sustainability of India's digital commerce ecosystem.
'There has to be a safe harbour for licensed entities, which have followed all the norms prescribed by the RBI.'
ICICI Bank is seeking recoveries of at least 100 crore from fintech firms, alleging merchant misclassification of their business, a practice that has eroded the bank's interchange income. The dispute, lodged with global card network Visa, highlights growing discomfort among banks and intensified scrutiny from the Reserve Bank of India.
API Holdings, the parent company of online pharmacy PharmEasy, has significantly reduced its debt from 1,800 crore to 1,050 crore and refinanced it at lower interest rates under CEO Rahul Guha, shifting its focus from 'growth at any cost' to profitability and aiming for a debt-free balance sheet before a potential stock market listing.
Retail giant Walmart has announced that India has become one of its fastest-growing sourcing hubs globally, with the company having procured over $40 billion worth of goods from the country. This initiative aims to expand supplier capabilities, improve compliance standards, and help Indian manufacturers scale exports worldwide.
IRCTC is expanding its payments arm, IRCTC Payments, to handle transactions across its ticketing platform and tap government clients, aiming to scale its annual payment processing to approximately 1 trillion.
'It is a tradeoff between convenience and fraud prevention.'
India's online retail market concluded 2025 with electronic retail (e-retail) gross merchandise value (GMV) reaching $65-66 billion, a 19-21 per cent increase, according to a report by Bain & Company and Flipkart. This growth is significantly driven by GenZ shoppers and the rapid expansion of quick commerce, which has emerged as a global leader.
India's quick-commerce (qcom) industry is facing significant profitability challenges in metro markets due to saturation and intense competition, with the number of dark stores already exceeding profitable capacity, according to a Bernstein report.
Ola Electric Mobility Ltd is redirecting 575 crore from its initial public offering (IPO) proceeds, originally earmarked for research and product development, towards debt repayment and organic growth initiatives, signalling mounting pressure on the electric-vehicle maker.
Following a ban on real-money gaming, Dream Sports, the parent company of Dream11, is strategically expanding its portfolio across 11 companies, including a new venture into wealth management and stockbroking, with a focus on serving a mass user base through AI-first solutions, cofounder Harsh Jain confirmed.
Mastercard and Visa are introducing passkeys that will allow users to authenticate card payments with face scans or fingerprints, eliminating the need for one-time passwords (OTPs).
