Life insurers may get to sell health covers

Top of the Morning

In this episode, find out about SEBI’s penalty on RIL over Facebook deal news, also find out about Bank of India’s plan to raise capital of Rs 2500 cr.
Business Term of the Day: Google Tax
Title – Life insurers may get to sell health covers Description – In this episode, find out about SEBI’s penalty on RIL over Facebook deal news, also find out about Bank of India’s plan to raise capital of Rs 2500 cr   Business Term of the Day:  Google Tax           India’s insurance regulator is planning to allow life insurance companies to offer full-fledged health insurance policies, two people with direct knowledge of the plans said, in a move that will likely reduce premiums and increase access to affordable health cover. An internal committee of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has been discussing the proposal over the past few weeks, and the regulator is likely to issue draft guidelines allowing life insurers to sell indemnity health insurance products (commonly known as mediclaim policies)   Sebi has imposed a penalty of ₹30 lakh on Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and its two compliance officers for alleged violation of Prohibition of Insider Trading regulations. The matter pertains to so-called lack of fair disclosures of unpublished price sensitive information, in the case of Facebook’s 9.99% investment in RIL subsidiary Jio Platforms in April 2020. The deal was worth ₹43, 574 crore.   Tata Steel: Imported about 75,000 tonnes of coal from Russia in the second half of May, weeks after pledging to stop doing business with Russia. A spokesman for Tata Steel said the deal to import coal from Russia was made before the company’s announcement to cut business ties with Russia, without providing further details.   ONGC: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has approved the extension of additional charge of the post of Chairman and Managing Director to Alka Mittal, Director (HR), for a period of two months to 31 August, or till the appointment of a regular incumbent to the post.   Vodafone Idea: The board of debt-ridden telecom firm is scheduled to meet on 22 June to consider a proposal for raising funds to the tune of ₹500 crore from Vodafone Group. The fundraising will be through the issuance of equity shares or convertible warrants on a preferential basis to one or more entities belonging to Vodafone Group.   Adani Power: Has completed of 100% equity shares of Support Properties Private Ltd. and Eternus Real Estate Private Ltd. from their respective shareholders for a total of ₹609.4 crore. Earlier this month, Adani Power had entered into share purchase agreements with the two companies.   Bank of India: The state-owned lender is mulling to raise up to ₹2,500 crore in fresh equity capital as it requires to increase public shareholding in the bank to 25% to comply with regulatory norms. Presently, public shareholding in Bank of India is 18.59%. According to the Sebi norms, listed companies are required to comply with the minimum public shareholding guidelines.   Bharat Forge: Has decided to consolidate its electric vehicle business initiatives under Kalyani Powertrain (KPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary, for a better strategic alignment. Accordingly, its Investment Committee – Strategic Business has approved the transfer of the company’s stake in Refu Drive GmbH, the joint venture company, to KPL subject to receipt of necessary approval from regulatory authorities.   Moving onto markets The markets are likely to open on a wobbly note as investors’ ward off recession fears. As of 8:02 AM, the SGX Nifty Futures quoted at 15,401 levels, signaling an upside of 51-odd points on the Nifty50. Global cues turned supportive on Tuesday as Asia-Pacific markets closed on a positive note. hat apart, US equity futures traded in a positive territory as well. Meanwhile, prices of crude oil clawed back last week’s losses. Prices of Brent Crude inched up 1.2 per cent to $115 per barrel and   Back home, telecom stocks will be in focus after the telecom department extended production-linked incentive to another year. That apart, LIC Housing Finance raised their benchmark prime lending rate to 60 basis points.     Business Term of the day A Google tax, also known as a diverted profits tax, refers to anti-avoidance tax provisions that have been introduced in several jurisdictions to deal with the practice of profits or royalties being diverted to other jurisdictions that have lower or zero tax rates.