While angel tax has been worked around for startups but section 56 56(2)(viib) of the Income-Tax Act still applies to companies that are not startups and have grown beyond 10 years. “So government should, in fact, abolish Section 56 for small businesses or SMEs as well. It is an unnecessary piece of legislation. If the idea is to curb black money then we already have Section 68 which says that government can ask for your source of money or by General Anti-Avoidance Rule,” Dr Saurabh Srivastava, Chairman Emeritus, TiE Delhi-NCR and Co-founder at Indian Angel Network told Financial Express Online.

Publication : Financial Express

Date : May 20, 2019

The litmus test for new policy in India, including for e-commerce, ought to be whether it helps the economy to grow and create jobs, especially when evidence is showing a decoupling of job growth from GDP growth. The fact is that with more and more young people entering the labour market, and with India looking more and more labour abundant than ever in its history, it is important we do not repeat mistakes of the past. Placing limits on competition for e-commerce platforms, as the new e-commerce policy attempts to, might actually be counterproductive.

Publication : Financial Express

Date : May 20, 2019

Bengaluru-based end-to-end home design and decor service provider Livspace has raised an undisclosed amount from IKEA group franchisee, Ingka Group (Ingka Holding B.V and its controlled entities) for a minority stake. The partnership is expected to enable the sharing of expertise between the two companies combining IKEA’s massive portfolio of products with Livspace’s technology platform. The funds will be used by the startup to develop new home interior solutions and products, market expansion and expanding offline retail footprint.

Publication : Inc.42

Date : May 20, 2019

Amazon might have finally found a way to crack the vernacular puzzle and add the next 100 million customers in the country. Its plan of action is simple: Introduce new users to the platform in a language of their choice, precisely through short videos, rather than making them read a plethora of information in a foreign language.The e-commerce giant will help the next wave of customers with 60-90 second videos that will have all information about products. The videos will have chat assistance from Alexa, Amazon’s voice assistant, in vernacular languages.

Publication : Business Standard

Date : May 20, 2019