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Eco/Invest/Demography

SBI Life and Bandhan Bank bid for Reliance Life, Major PEs line up to acquier Reliance General Insurance

For Reliance Nippon Life Insurance, in which RCAP owns 51 per cent controlling stake, has received 16 bids, including Bain Capital, NIIF, Arpwood Partners, Dabur Investments, Bandhan Bank, and Multiples Asset Management among others.

For Reliance General Insurance, which is owned 100 per cent by Reliance Capital , there are 18 bidders and prominent among them are, Chryscap, J.C. Flower, Blackstone, KKR, CVC Capital Partners, and Bain Capital.

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Asian business confidence gains steam, pandemic still top risk: Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey

“There’s a sense of optimism going forward,” said Antonio Fatas, Singapore-based economics professor at global business school INSEAD.“Things are getting better but they are getting better with still a dose of uncertainty. The effect of the crisis is very different across sectors,” he added, noting the weakness in the transport sector due to curbs on global travel.

Still, more than half the respondents polled flagged persistent cases of the novel coronavirus as well as the possible scarcity of vaccines in parts of the world – at least initially – as their biggest risk.

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Scientists say UK strain unlikely to affect efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, warn against more mutations

According to Jeremy Farrar, director of the London-based research charity Wellcome Trust UK, there is no indication at the moment that the new strain would evade treatments and vaccines.

However, the mutation is a reminder of the power of the virus to adapt, and that cannot be ruled out in the future. Acting urgently to reduce transmission is critical, Farrar said in a statement.

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Nine in 10 India Employees Feel Prepared to Work Remotely for the Long-Term

However, employees shared concerns about not having access to the right technologies and the blurring of boundaries between work and personal lives in a long-term remote work arrangement. 

The research also found that the most in-demand technology resources that employees want are productivity equipment or tools, remote access to internal company resources and cloud technology.

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Govt plans to set up a development finance institution:DFS Secy

“We need a development financial institution as infra financing needs patient capital, and banks are currently not suited for lending for long term projects which do not generate any cash for years,” Financial Services Secretary Debasish Panda told PTI in an interview.

Even deepening the bond market with regard to infrastructure financing is a matter which is receiving attention of the government and there is a need to do something more in order to have a robust bond market for infrastructure financing, he said.

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44% rural Indians willing to pay for COVID-19 vaccine; 51% consider coronavirus ‘Chinese conspiracy’: Survey

The survey, conducted by Gaon Connection among 6,040 rural respondents across 60 districts in 16 states and one union territory, found that 36 per cent said they would not want to pay for it. The remaining 20 per cent said they are yet to decide on paying for the vaccine.

Of those who were willing to pay, two-third said they can pay up to Rs 500 for two doses of the vaccine, whenever it is available.

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