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Two sisters donate ‘half of their livers’ to save their only brother, all three recuperating and leading a normal life

Dr Naresh Trehan, Chairperson and Managing Director, Medanta Hospital, said, “This is a unique example showcasing the power of organ donation to save lives. It draws our attention to the fact that any healthy person can save a loved one’s life by donating half of their liver or a single kidney without suffering any harm.”

Asia Pacific sovereign ratings can withstand Covid-19 waves: S&P

“Covid-19 does limited damage to the economic growth trend and structural fiscal performance of most sovereigns in the region,” said S&P Global Ratings credit analyst Kim Eng Tan. “Consequently, most sovereign ratings in the region are likely to remain unchanged over the next one to two years,” he said.

However, sovereigns’ fiscal resilience to future shocks can weaken as government debt levels rise further in the continued struggle with the pandemic. “The impact of further waves of Covid-19 infections could lower sovereign ratings that already have negative outlooks, especially if revenue growth disappoints and interest rates rebound by more than we expect,” said Tan.

 QubeHealth partners with OboPay to launch 0% pre-approved medical credit for corporate employees

The product has been rolled out to a select group of 150 large companies employing over 1,50,000 people in India, as part of their Employee Health Benefits program and activated across 735 towns/cities.

Chris George, CEO & Co-Founder of QubeHealth, says, “Employee-Healthcare is now center-stage conversation for companies across India and HR teams have wanted to provide a comprehensive solution to their team’s families as they navigate their way through the pandemic. By facilitating emergency healthcare funds on tap, at no cost of capital, Employees will now have the flexibility to make better healthcare choices and augment any company-paid health insurance.”

Ki appoints Richard Hodgson as its chief technology officer

Mark Allan, CEO, Ki said: “At Ki, we are taking a technology first approach to underwriting. We are therefore delighted that Richard joins Ki in the newly created role of CTO. Richard will bring an entrepreneurial approach and proven experience in scaling technology in a high-growth business as we look to continually explore new opportunities to provide a best-in-class and differentiated digital service to the market.”

16 merchant bankers in race for managing LIC IPO

Seven international bankers, including BNP Paribas, Citigroup Global Markets India and DSP Merrill Lynch Ltd (now known as BofA Securities), will make presentations on Tuesday, as per a circular by DIPAM.

Other bankers that will be making presentations on Tuesday are — Goldman Sachs (India) Securities, HSBC Securities and Capital Markets (India), JP Morgan India, Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India).

Modernising Fraud Risk Management: a must for Insurers in Pandemic

Equipped with subject matter expertise, technology, insight, connections, and money, these fraudsters are running mini organized crime empires across the country. With help from insiders, they have mapped the insurers to understand their SOPs, priorities, approach and risk appetite. 
Indian insurance companies have also learned and devised effective fraud risk mitigation techniques aimed at controlling these leakages. They have invested in technology and embraced analytics in their fight against fraud.

Passenger trains, stadiums, railway stations, airports in Rs 6 lakh cr monetisation plan

Under the plan, private companies can invest in projects for a fixed return using the InvIT route as well as operate and develop the assets for a certain period before transferring it back to the government agency. Some assets such as warehouses and stadiums can also be given on a long-term lease for operations.

”The asset monetisation pipeline takes the NIP (National Infrastructure Pipeline) to the next phase where you are looking at public-private partnership,” Sitharaman told a press conference.

HCL to transform Munich Re workplace services in 40 countries

“The last 12 months have triggered the biggest change in how companies empower and support their employees,” said Robin Johnson, Group CIO of Munich Re.It will support Munich Re’s global workforce in multiple languages including German, Spanish and Mandarin from near-shore locations. It will also implement a personalised service desk solution and leverage the power of automation and self-service capabilities to improve efficiency and enhance employee user experiences.

AXA Hong Kong and HSBC jointly launch Overseas StudySurance

Kenneth Lai, P&C Distribution Director, AXA Hong Kong and Macau, said, “Education is the key to success. Many parents would provide their children with the best education by letting them study abroad. However, the best protection is also essential to ensure a holistic support and care during their overseas study journeys. As the largest general insurer in Hong Kong, we are delighted to partner with HSBC to offer the comprehensive student protection ‘Overseas StudySurance’ – a plan with market-leading medical expenses and personal accident coverage, to provide peace of mind for students and their parents when they pursue their overseas studies.”

India’s first smog tower inaugurated in Delhi

”This is the first such smog tower in the country. It’s a new technology. We have imported it from the US. The structure will suck polluted air from above and release clean air from below. It will purify 1,000 cubic metres of air per second,” Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal told reporters.
Experts, however, feel smog towers may provide immediate relief from air pollution in a small area but they are a costly quick-fix measure with no scientific evidence to back their efficacy in the long term.

Governments should instead address root causes and promote renewable energy to tackle air pollution and reduce emissions, they said.

Pandemic threatens Asia-Pacific’s progress on global development goals, says ADB

Developing Asia’s extreme poverty rate – or the proportion of its people living on less than $1.90 a day – would have fallen to 2.6% in 2020 from 5.2% in 2017 without COVID-19, but the crisis likely pushed last year’s projected rate higher by about 2 percentage points, ADB simulations showed.
The figure could even be higher considering the inequalities in areas like health, education and work disruptions that have deepened as the COVID-19 crisis disrupted mobility and stalled economic activity, the ADB said in a flagship report on the region.

Startups raised $6.5 bn in Apr-Jun period, 11 new unicorns created: Report

The biggest deal during the quarter was the USD 800 million fund raise by food delivery platform Swiggy, followed by ShareChat (USD 502 million), Byju’s (USD 340 million), PharmEasy (USD 323 million) and Meesho (USD 300 million), the report said.
“The Indian startup ecosystem that generated 53 unicorns till June 2021 has made great strides in the April-June quarter. From recording most funding deals to adding the most number of unicorns in a quarter, investors’ confidence in good-quality digital businesses has strengthened like never before,” PGA Labs Director, Competitive Intelligence Abhishek Maiti told PTI.