Bharath walks into a shop to buy a mobile phone worth ₹50,000. He scans the UPI QR code, enters the amount and within seconds, the payment is done. There is no cash, no card and no extra charge visible to him. For Bharath, UPI is simply a convenient and almost effortless way of making a payment. But what happens on the other side of that QR code? The introduction of the new Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) framework brings this question into focus. From October 15, 2026, specifie

Twelve years is a long time for a wage ceiling to remain unchanged. The last revision came in September 2014, when the limit was raised from Rs.6,500 to Rs.15,000. Last week, the Union Cabinet approved another increase, taking the ceiling to Rs.25,000 a month with effect from 17 September 2026. The government’s estimate is that more than 51 lakh additional employees will come within mandatory EPFO coverage as a result of the change. For employers and payroll professionals

AI Generated Image Every year, when Ganpati Bappa arrives in our homes, we welcome him as the Vighnaharta - the remover of obstacles. We pray for wisdom, prosperity, good health and the strength to overcome difficulties. The same thought can guide us in our financial lives too. A strong financial plan is not just about earning more or finding the best investment. It is equally about recognising and removing the vighnas that quietly come in the way of financial progress. Debt

AI Generated Image At some point in almost every conversation I have with a founder, something shifts. We are talking about their business, their brand, how they show up - and then, in the middle of a sentence, they say something that stops everything. Not dramatically. Quietly. A small, precise observation about themselves that lands with the weight of something long known and never said out loud. I already know I need to work on this. I just haven't done it yet. Said so cas

Robust GDP growth masks uneven consumption, capital-flow pressures and a widening debate over the methodology of India’s economic data. AI generated image India’s growth outlook is increasingly influenced by interconnected geopolitical and environmental risks. The recent Gulf conflict exposed the country’s dependence on imports, as disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea constrained global trade routes and energy supplies. While India managed to diversify energy sourc

The balance sheet of a government belongs, in a broader sense, to the citizens. In India’s rapidly evolving economic landscape, the role of a Chartered Accountant is no longer confined to balance sheets, audits and taxation. Increasingly, the profession is finding relevance in public policy, governance and political leadership. The journey of Chartered Accountants such as Piyush Goyal demonstrates how financial expertise can influence decisions far beyond the corporate world.

As the aroma of freshly steamed Modaks fills homes during Ganesh Utsav, the festive spirit comes alive instantly. My mouth is already watering at the thought! The humble Modak, prepared with love to honour Lord Ganesha, may look simple from the outside. But anyone who has tried making one knows that a good Modak depends on several things coming together - the right ingredients, the right recipe, patience with the process, and finally, enjoying the result. Investing is surpris

She was excellent at what she did. That much was obvious from the moment she walked in. Years of experience, a sharp mind, the kind of quiet confidence that comes from having built something real. She had come to learn something new — a different approach, a different field, an entirely different way of doing things. And in the first hour, it was clear she understood the concept. She could articulate it. She could discuss it intelligently. What she could not do was let go of

Mumbai: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed a Federated Industry Platform for the fintech sector while addressing the Global Fintech Fest at Mumbai on Friday. In her valedictory address, Nirmala Sitharaman described the fintech sector’s tremendous growth because it has not been heavily organized yet. She pointed out that as the companies in this sector become larger and more international, there is a need for a platform like this to lend a credible and collecti

The Indian economy appears stronger than the nervousness visible in the stock market might suggest. Corporate earnings are improving, domestic demand remains reasonably resilient and several sectors are reporting healthy growth. Yet investors are facing an unusual mix of risks: crude oil is moving towards $100 a barrel, global bond yields are rising, foreign investors have turned sellers again and parts of the Indian market remain expensive. That leads to a simple investment

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurates the expo at the 'Global Fintech Fest 2026' at the Jio World Centre in Mumbai on Wednesday. Pic: PTI Mumbai: Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday announced that the state will implement the new DELTA Act in the field of tokenisation. He said that Maharashtra will be the first state in India to create a legislative framework for tokenisation. Fadnavis was addressing the Global Fintech Fest 2026. He said, “Maharas

Mumbai: The City and Industrial Development Corporation’s (CIDCO) latest housing scheme has exposed a recurring challenge for the planning authority: finding buyers for its large housing inventory despite its affordable-housing focus. The August 2026 scheme offered 4,793 homes in Taloja, Kharghar and Kalamboli and received 4,180 confirmed applications before bookings closed on September 3. While CIDCO described the response as strong, 613 homes—nearly 13 per cent of the inven

India’s vast dairy economy has turned ageing livestock into a $5-billion export engine and a new instrument of South-South trade. India’s enormous livestock economy is capable of sustaining both large-scale domestic consumption and a substantial international protein trade. According to livestock census data, the country has roughly 74.26 million sheep, 148.88 million goats and 9.06 million pigs, alongside vast standing populations of bovines and poultry. Together, these anim

The Annapurna Bhandar scheme is meant to put money in women’s hands, but where husbands control the purse strings, it could become another source of domestic tension and violence. Mariam’s husband used to beat her when she was pregnant. She suffered a miscarriage. The abuse escalated after she gave birth to their first child. On one occasion, he refused to give her money to buy formula milk for their six-month-old baby. She had to feed the child cow’s milk instead. He constan

AI generated image The controversy over India’s latest GDP numbers have acquired an importance that extends beyond the economy. The Q1 2026-27 estimate has prompted accusations by some quarters that the BJP-led Central government allegedly manipulated the statistical base to manufacture a stronger growth rate. National accounting is not a matter of picking two numbers and calculating the difference between them. It involves a constantly evolving statistical framework, changin

As tax authorities gain unprecedented visibility into financial transactions, filing a return is becoming only the beginning of compliance. For most Indians, income-tax compliance has long had a familiar rhythm. The financial year wraps up, you gather your paperwork, file your return, and put the matter away until next year. But things aren’t quite that simple anymore. This year, Indians filed more than 7.28 crore income-tax returns for Assessment Year 2024-25 — a 7.5 percent

AI Generated Image Every September, we remember our teachers - the ones who shaped our thinking, disciplined our efforts, and instilled in us habits that stayed far beyond the classroom. Teacher’s Day, celebrated on 5th September, is not just about gratitude for academics; it is also a chance to revisit the timeless life lessons that apply to every sphere - including our financial journey. Let us look at four lessons our teachers gave us: 1. Level up as you grow Remember

At some point in the conversation, I quietly stopped listening altogether. Not because the person was uninteresting. Not because the topic was irrelevant. But because somewhere between the third and fourth tangent, I had already checked out. The words were still coming. The energy was still high. But the connection that makes a conversation worth having had long since left the room. This happens more than most founders realise. And the version that most concerns me is not the

Part 2: Three decades after the 1991 crisis, India’s record Forex reserves have transformed the country from a crisis-prone borrower into an economy with a formidable external shock absorber. AI generated image Three decades ago, India had so few dollars that it had to pledge gold to avert a balance-of-payments crisis. Today, it sits on a foreign-exchange war chest of more than US$700 billion. The journey from near-bankruptcy to external resilience is one of the quieter succe

Part 1: The journey from US$1.2 billion in reserves to US$729.3 billion is one of India’s great economic transformations. Part I examines how the foundations were laid. India once had enough foreign exchange to pay for barely two weeks of essential imports. Today, it has enough to cover nearly 11 months of merchandise imports. The distance between those two numbers tells one of the most consequential economic stories of modern India. India’s foreign exchange reserves touched