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Good morning from the Nasscom technology and leadership forum in Mumbai where AI is on everyone’s lips. Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said his government’s intent was to embrace AI in all aspects of life. His team is chalking out a new policy and this is expected to make the work of bureaucrats easier, and give people the option to access government services digitally. The excitement here about the potential of the technology is so high that I think Mumbai could rebrand itself as Mumb.ai.
But more on that later. In today’s newsletter, we look at the Religare ownership saga and the global retreat from electric vehicles.
An ownership battle for Religare
After 18 months of drama and intrigue, the Burman family, which owns the consumer goods major Dabur, has completed its takeover of the financial services company Religare. On Friday, Religare’s shares rose nearly 19 per cent after the announcement that the Burmans had the required number of shares to take control. If an edge-of-the-seat thriller about business in India were to be written, it should be the story of Religare, a tale of unbelievable twists and turns, involving pretty much every law enforcement agency and all levels of the justice system. (Michael Lewis, are you reading this?)
The story of the fight for Religare started in 2018 after the founders of the company, the Singh brothers, Malvinder and Shivinder Mohan, were arrested. This resulted in lenders of Religare pledging their shares and taking control. A new board with independent directors was put in place and Rashmi Saluja was appointed chief executive. This helped stabilise the company, with bottom lines and the share price showing significant recovery.
In September 2023 the Burman family, which had been accumulating its shareholding, announced an open offer to acquire a 26 per cent stake in the company. In the following months, each week brought a new twist to the tale, with the independent directors, chief executive and the Burman brothers filing suits and counter suits against each other.
More drama unfolded after the open offer went live, with a new cast of characters popping up every few weeks. Every investigating agency was brought in by some player or the other: the Enforcement Directorate, the police, Sebi, the central bank — you name it. Even in the last couple of weeks as the open offer ran, no one could have predicted its outcome with any degree of certainty.
The fight for control of Religare was inevitable, considering it is a leading player in several financial services. Its insurance arm, Care Health, is the country’s second largest standalone health insurer and the company has been preparing for an IPO. The broking service has also been steadily growing, capitalising on the boom in retail participation in the stock markets. The stock has grown many times over, from Rs39 ($0.45) in 2020 to Rs256 in 2025.
Analysts say the Burmans will have to infuse more capital to stabilise and expand some of the subsidiaries. With the uncertainty over the ownership dispute behind them, new leadership will bring in stability and the ability to execute a longer term strategy. But the story of Religare ultimately highlights the governance and regulatory challenges in corporate India, and the risks that shareholders — especially minority and retail — have to assume when investing their money. No amount of financial analysis and risk projections can take these many factors into account.
Have you been following this saga? Tell us what you think. Hit reply or email us at indiabrief@ft.com.
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Running out of juice
In what seems to be a moment of reckoning, major automakers around the world are slowing down on their plans for electric vehicles. General Motors, Porsche, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are all investing in new or upgraded internal combustion engines (petrol or diesel cars) and hybrid models, as they wait for electric vehicles to become more mainstream.
India is expected to be a growth market for EVs but with market penetration being low, this global churn will have an impact in the domestic market as well. On Thursday, as part of the announcement of its midterm management plan, Maruti’s parent company, Suzuki Motors, said it would only be launching four new models in India by 2030. Previously, the target was six. The company’s first offering, the e Vitara, is expected to hit the roads in a few months.
While some media attribute this to the impending launch of Tesla in India, that is unlikely to be the case. There has been intense speculation about Tesla’s plans for manufacturing in India, especially since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US and meeting with Elon Musk. But there is little evidence on the ground.
For now, all we have to go by are job openings for sales and customer service positions posted on LinkedIn. That Tesla is looking to start selling in India does not imply that they are also putting together an immediate plan to start making cars here. It’s safe to say there will be far bigger signs than social media job ads if and when that happens. The government will probably notify its EV policy first. This was announced in March 2024, but is yet to be implemented. And then we’ll see if Musk can tear himself away from shaking up the American bureaucracy to visit India, a trip he cancelled at the last minute in April 2024.
Go figure
China’s holdings of US Treasuries have fallen to their lowest level since 2009. The change is partly because China is diversifying to other assets such as gold, but it is also likely that Beijing is disguising its holdings by shifting them to accounts registered in other parts of the world. Here’s a snapshot of the top three foreign holders of US treasuries.
My mantra
“There is absolutely no substitute to using every AI tool that you can get your hands on today to manage your life, because it not only helps you remain abreast of so many things that are happening, but also helps you improve your productivity by leaps and bounds. I have learned many new AI tools from my children, and it has helped me improve quality of my life manifold”
— Sonia Dasgupta, chief executive of investment banking, JM Financial
Each week, we invite a top Indian business leader to tell us their mantra for work and life. Want to know what your boss is thinking? Nominate them by replying to indiabrief@ft.com.
Quick question
On Saturday, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India was leading in both AI adoption and in shaping how it is governed. Do you agree? Let us know your reasons at indiabrief@ft.com
Buzzer round
On Friday we asked: The leader of which country has promised a whole bunch of cash handouts, including almost $600 for every household, as part of its pre-election budget?
The answer is . . . Singapore.
Aniruddha Dutta was the first to send us the correct answer. Congratulations!
Thank you for reading. India Business Briefing is edited today by Tee Zhuo. Please send feedback, suggestions (and gossip) to indiabrief@ft.com.