Financial innovation and digital payments gain cross-border boost through India-Vietnam cooperation on QR code merchant payments.
The Reserve Bank of India and the State Bank of Vietnam signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote cooperation in financial innovation and digital payments, including information exchange, regulatory coordination, and payment system connectivity for cross-border QR code-based merchant payments. The framework contemplates joint programmes and projects, sharing of standards and best practices, and development of cross-border payment linkages subject to applicable laws and regulations.

Public Sector Banks performance review highlights record profitability, stronger asset quality, digital lending, and unclaimed asset restitution efforts.
Public Sector Banks were reviewed for business growth, profitability, asset quality, financial inclusion, digital lending, cyber resilience and operational risk management, with emphasis on governance, resilience and customer service. The review noted record aggregate business and net profit, with gross and net non-performing assets at historic lows, reflecting balance-sheet strengthening and prudent risk management. The meeting also highlighted efforts to trace and restitute unclaimed financial assets, launched a revamped multilingual and accessible Department of Financial Services website, and reviewed digital lending, grievance redressal, cost discipline and preparedness against global uncertainties.

GST return compliance triggers provisional assessment, tax demand and proposed registration cancellation for persistent filing defaults.
GST authorities initiated action for persistent non-filing and delayed filing of GST returns, leading to a provisional assessment of tax liability under the CGST and SGST framework. The department issued a tax demand based on repeated irregularities in return compliance and also proposed cancellation of GST registration through a show-cause notice. The matter concerns return-filing obligations, provisional assessment, tax demand, and registration-cancellation proceedings under GST law.

L-1 liquor licence denial turns on whether pending money laundering prosecution can justify refusal under excise law.
Wholesale liquor supply L-1 licence was denied on the basis of a pending money laundering prosecution. The challenge argued that, without conviction, there was no criminal background for licence denial under the Delhi Excise Act, and that discharge in the scheduled offence undermined the PMLA case. The High Court declined to interfere with the refusal and treated the pending prosecution as relevant to the licence applications.

On-screen marking transparency faces answer-sheet mix-ups as CBSE reviews scanning quality and portal integration issues.
Around 20 answer-sheet mix-up cases were reported in CBSE's first-time on-screen marking process, with students identifying mismatched scanned copies through the portal. The board later shared the correct answer sheets with affected students and treated the complaints as top-priority concerns in the revaluation process. Scanning-quality issues also led to rescanning of about 68,000 answer sheets, while a little over 13,000 still did not attain the required legible quality even after rescanning.

Rupee strength against the US dollar gains support from softer crude, weaker dollar and improved US-Iran ceasefire sentiment.
The rupee strengthened against the US dollar on improved market sentiment after optimism over a US-Iran ceasefire extension, lower crude oil prices and a softer dollar. Market participants also noted suspected central bank support, while attention shifted to the upcoming RBI Monetary Policy Committee meeting and its balance between currency stability and inflation management. Broader market conditions showed equity weakness, net foreign institutional selling and a decline in India's foreign exchange reserves.

PMLA jurisdiction dispute over ED probe before scheduled offence and natural justice objections in appeal
CMRL has filed an appeal challenging an order permitting the Enforcement Directorate to continue a PMLA investigation before a formal FIR or final report by the SFIO. The company contends that no scheduled offence existed when the probe began and that a later complaint could not retrospectively confer jurisdiction on the ED. It also raises a natural justice objection, alleging that additional affidavits were allowed after reservation and that it was denied an opportunity to respond.

Special economic zones notified in Puducherry for IT/ITES and multi-sector development under the SEZ framework.
The government has notified two special economic zones in Puducherry for development under the SEZ framework. One is an IT/ITES SEZ proposed by Oulgaret Municipality at Thattanchavady village in Oulgaret Taluk, and the other is a multi-sector SEZ proposed by the Pondicherry Industrial Promotion Development and Investment Corporation at Karasur village in Villianur Taluk. The proposals had already received approval from the Board of Approval for SEZs under the Department of Commerce.

Macroeconomic resilience and inflation risks shape RBI's outlook amid West Asia tensions, monsoon dependence and El Nino concerns.
India's growth outlook remains supported by strong macroeconomic fundamentals, private consumption, investment and public capital expenditure, even though the economy may face near-term headwinds from the West Asia conflict, elevated energy prices, supply chain disruptions, financial market volatility, uncertainty in global trade policies and weather-related disruptions. The agriculture sector remains dependent on the south-west monsoon, and El Nino conditions create downside risks to output. Inflation is expected to remain broadly aligned with target, though upside risks may arise from global fuel and commodity prices, input and wage costs, and exchange-rate volatility.

Special Economic Zones in Puducherry expand industrial growth, investment, exports and employment through IT/ITES and multi-sector projects.
Two new Special Economic Zones were notified in Puducherry after approval by the Board of Approval for SEZs under the Department of Commerce. One is an IT/ITES SEZ to be developed by M/s Oulgaret Municipality at Thattanchavady village in Oulgaret Taluk, described as the first SEZ in India to be developed by an urban local body. The other is a multi-sector SEZ to be developed by M/s Pondicherry Industrial Promotion Development and Investment Corporation at Karasur village in Villianur Taluk.

Unclaimed financial assets portal launched to simplify access to bank deposits, insurance claims, shares and mutual funds.
A Common Landing Portal for Unclaimed Financial Assets has been launched as a single unified online platform to facilitate citizen search and tracing of unclaimed bank deposits, insurance claims, shares, dividends and mutual funds across the financial ecosystem. The portal provides consolidated access to multiple search facilities relating to unclaimed financial assets and is intended to improve convenience, awareness and access to information.

Digital fixed deposits combine competitive returns, paperless onboarding and Video KYC for resident investors seeking secure banking convenience.
Competitive fixed deposit products are being marketed to depositors seeking stable returns, low-risk exposure, capital protection and digital convenience, with emphasis on RBI-regulated banking frameworks, paperless onboarding and online maturity management. The Equitas Digital Full KYC Digital Fixed Deposit is presented as a fully digital deposit option available through mobile-app onboarding and Video KYC, with deposit insurance coverage under the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation framework.

Rupee depreciation and operating disruptions weigh on IndiGo's performance, while capacity and income still rise.
Rupee depreciation, challenging operating conditions, flight disruptions and changes in labour laws materially affected IndiGo's financial performance for the March quarter and the 2025-26 fiscal. The airline reported a net loss for the quarter and for the full year, while stating that its revenue and capacity still increased during the period. Excluding foreign exchange and exceptional items, it said it would have reported a profit, and it noted further expected capacity growth in the June quarter.

Rupee internationalisation gains ground as import-export invoicing rises and fraud reporting remains a major banking concern.
Rupee invoicing for imports and exports has increased over the years, reflecting a continuing process of INR internationalisation in trade transactions. The Reserve Bank's data indicates that wider use of the domestic currency in cross-border invoicing is being treated as mutually beneficial to trading partners. Banks and financial institutions have also reported a large number of fraud cases, underscoring continuing compliance and risk-management concerns within the financial sector.

Foreign exchange reserves decline as RBI reports broad-based weekly fall across currency assets, gold, SDRs and IMF reserves.
India's foreign exchange reserves declined during the reporting week, with the overall forex kitty falling as the Reserve Bank of India reported reductions in foreign currency assets, gold reserves, Special Drawing Rights and the reserve position with the IMF. The decrease in reserves was spread across the principal reserve components rather than confined to a single item, indicating a broad-based weekly contraction in external reserve assets.

Corporate and financial forum spotlights India's macro outlook, capital markets, AI and investment trends.
Citi will host its flagship India Conference 2026 in Mumbai as a two-day corporate and financial forum bringing together clients, senior executives, investors and other market participants for engagement, networking and knowledge-sharing. The conference agenda will cover the macroeconomic outlook, policy environment, capital markets, emerging investment trends, artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and innovation.

India-U.S. trade and investment ties strengthened through business talks on technology, healthcare, finance and supply chain resilience.
Strengthening India-U.S. trade and investment relations through high-level business engagements focused on expanding cooperation with global industry leaders in financial services, healthcare, digital payments, manufacturing, innovation, artificial intelligence, and emerging technologies. The discussions highlighted opportunities for global businesses in India, supply chain resilience, India's attractiveness as an investment destination, economic reforms, ease of doing business, and deeper industry-to-industry collaboration.

AI governance framework launch for secure adoption, operational oversight, and compliance alignment across enterprise AI systems.
A cybersecurity and standards body has launched the Adopt. Defend. Govern. (ADG) AI Framework and a free AI Readiness Self-Assessment Tool to help organizations securely adopt, operationalize, and govern artificial intelligence at scale. The framework presents a unified governance structure with three pillars, 12 minimum controls, nine governance surfaces, implementation overlays, and accountability mechanisms for AI systems, agentic AI environments, multi-model architectures, and large language model ecosystems. It is designed to align with major global AI governance and security standards and reduce compliance fragmentation.

Securities market fraud and disclosure violations: Supreme Court sets aside disgorgement while sustaining penalty for position-limit breach
The Supreme Court partly allowed the appeal in SEBI proceedings concerning trading in Reliance Petroleum Ltd. shares and set aside the finding of fraud under the PFUTP Regulations as well as the disgorgement order. It nevertheless upheld the penalty linked to violation of disclosure requirements under the SEBI circular on position limits. The Court also directed refund of the amount deposited in the Investor Protection Fund under an earlier interim order.

Rupee strength amid softer crude and dollar weakness as markets await the RBI Monetary Policy Committee meeting.
The rupee strengthened against the US dollar on renewed optimism after the US and Iran extended the ceasefire and agreed to fresh talks. Softer crude oil prices and a weaker dollar supported the currency, while traders warned that renewed US-Iran tensions could pressure the rupee. Market focus turned to the upcoming RBI Monetary Policy Committee meeting, where the central bank may weigh currency stability alongside inflation management.