Wipro Completes Acquisition Of Olam Group’s IT And Digital Services Business, Mindsprint

Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO), a leading AI-powered technology services and consulting company today announced that its acquisition of Olam Group’s IT and digital services business, Mindsprint, has been concluded following the completion of relevant regulatory approvals.

The Mindsprint acquisition was originally announced on April 6, 2026, as a part of Wipro’s 8-year strategic transformation deal win from Olam Group, a leading US$ 50+[1] Billion food and agri‑business headquartered in Singapore, employing nearly 40,000 people, and majority owned by Temasek Holdings.

The strategic engagement with Olam Group expands Wipro’s farm‑to‑fork capabilities, scaling the impact of Wipro Intelligence™ across the food and agri‑business industry. Mindsprint’s deep domain expertise and IP‑led solutions, particularly across supply chain and commodity trading, combined with Wipro’s consulting‑led and AI‑powered capabilities, aim to unlock growth opportunities, catalyse innovation, and drive market‑ready transformation for Olam Group and Wipro’s global clients. This includes key areas such as farming, forecasting, trading, supply‑chain operations, and customer engagement.

“We are pleased to welcome the leadership team, employees, and clients of Mindsprint to Wipro. Our strategic engagement with Olam Group, combined with the acquisition of Mindsprint, strengthens Wipro’s position in the areas of supply chain and commodity trading, as well as the global food and agri‑business sector, and expands our ability to deliver AI‑powered, IP‑led, and domain‑centric transformation at scale,” said Vinay Firake, Chief Executive Officer of Wipro’s APMEA (Asia Pacific, India, Middle East, and Africa) Strategic Market Unit. “Mindsprint’s farm‑to‑fork expertise deepens our value chain capabilities, accelerates the global deployment of Wipro Intelligence™, and enhances our ability to drive sustainable growth, operational leverage, and long‑term business value.”

Suresh Sundararajan, Chief Executive Officer of Mindsprint said: “This acquisition marks an important milestone in Mindsprint’s journey. Becoming part of Wipro provides our teams with a global platform, greater scale, and access to deep consulting, engineering, and AI-powered capabilities. Our strong domain expertise in food, agri-business, and supply chain intensive industries, combined with Wipro’s global reach and technology leadership, creates a powerful opportunity to deliver differentiated, end-to-end transformation for clients. I am excited about what this next phase means for our people, and the long-term value we can create together for Olam Group and our clients across the industry.”

Mindsprint employs over 3,200 professionals and has been an enabler of Olam Group's digital transformation journey. It brings deep domain expertise in the food and agri-business sector, alongside strong capabilities in supply chain transformation, digital platforms, and proprietary IP‑led solutions such as Farmsprint® for plantation management, Procuresprint® for agentic AI-enabled procurement transformation, SprintAP™ for payables transformation, Salessprint™ for sales operations, and the Tradesprint® Commodity Trading and Risk Management platform.

Under the terms of the transaction, Mindsprint has become a wholly owned subsidiary of Wipro, operating as “Mindsprint, a Wipro Company”.

Rothschild & Co. acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Wipro and Avendus Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Olam Group and Mindsprint on this transaction.

About Wipro Limited

Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO) is a leading AI-powered technology services and consulting company focused on building innovative solutions that address clients’ most complex digital transformation needs. Leveraging our consulting-led approach and the Wipro Intelligence™ unified suite of AI-powered platforms, solutions and transformative offerings, we help clients realize their boldest ambitions to build intelligent and sustainable businesses. The Wipro Innovation Network – part of the Wipro Intelligence™ suite – underpins our commitment to client-centric co-innovation and co-creation by bringing together capabilities from the innovation labs and partner labs, academia, and global tech communities. With over 240,000 employees and business partners across 65 countries, we deliver on the promise of helping our customers, colleagues, and communities thrive in an ever-changing world. For additional information, visit us at www.wipro.com.

About Mindsprint

Mindsprint exists to responsibly engineer the next generation of enterprises driven by insight, innovation, and passion. With a proven track record spanning two decades, we are the partner of choice for high-impact, AI-driven technology solutions for clients across the globe in industries such as retail, agriculture, manufacturing, healthcare, and life sciences among others. Our offerings include enterprise technology applications, business process services, cybersecurity solutions, and automation-as-a-service – delivered with a strong commitment to responsible innovation. Headquartered in Singapore, Mindsprint has a global workforce of 3,200+ professionals across the US, UK, Middle East, India, and Australia. To learn more, visit www.mindsprint.com.  

TECHgium® 2026 Sees Record Nationwide Participation, Reinforcing India’s Deep-Tech Engineering Potential

* 9th edition of India’s largest engineering innovation platform records over 60% surge in participation, with nominations from 540+ engineering institutes

L&T Technology Services (BSE: 540115, NSE: LTTS), a global leader in AI, Digital & ER&D Consulting Services, successfully concluded the ninth edition of TECHgium®, India’s largest engineering innovation platform for students, at its Mysuru campus on Friday. The latest edition recorded 62,000+ registrations from 540+ engineering institutes nationwide, marking a 60% surge over the previous edition and nearly 800% growth since its launch in 2016.

Finalists this year showcased innovative proofs-of-concept across a wide spectrum of technologies, including robotic automation for medical diagnostics, AI-powered multilingual video localization, live AI captioning systems, Wi-Fi sensing for smart home monitoring, and adaptive robotic arms for safer industrial operations. By challenging students to solve real-world engineering problems through deep-tech innovation, applied research, and industry mentorship, TECHgium® has increasingly become a showcase for next-generation Engineering Intelligence (EI) - where AI, software, hardware and domain expertise converge to create intelligent, scalable and industry-relevant solutions.

Details:
Winners: Team from M. S. Ramaiah Institute of Engineering, Bengaluru, Karnataka, for their revolutionary project on NextGen Self-Charging Hybrid Scooter.

Runner-up: Students from RNS Institute of Technology, Bengaluru, Karnataka, for their project, TETROBOT - Modular Robotic Arm.

Second Runner-up: Students from PSNA College of Engineering and Technology, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, for their project on AERIS - Stability Starts with Comfort.

People Choice Award: Team from Institute of Technical Education & Research (ITER), Bhubaneswar, Odisha, for their project on C.H.I.R.A.N.J.E.E.V.I.

Padma Shri Dr. Shubha V Iyengar, veteran scientist from CSIR-NAL – renowned for the development of Drishti, India's first indigenous runway visibility-measuring system, attended the event as Chief Guest. Commenting on the event, Dr. Iyengar, said, “TECHgium® offers a compelling glimpse into the future of engineering innovation. What makes this platform remarkable is its ability to transform student-led concepts into practical, industry-relevant solutions with real-world impact. Initiatives like these are essential to fostering open innovation and nurturing the next generation of engineering breakthroughs.”

Following a rigorous nine-month mentorship and evaluation process led by LTTS engineers and domain experts, 34 finalist teams presented working prototypes before a distinguished jury of industry leaders, academicians, and analysts. Winners received prizes worth over INR 18 lakhs.

“TECHgium® has become a strong reflection of India’s rising deep-tech engineering capabilities and the innovation potential of its young talent,” said Rajeev Gupta, Executive Director & Chief Financial Officer, L&T Technology Services. “Over nine editions, the platform has evolved into a nationwide innovation ecosystem bridging academia and industry. The scale and quality of solutions showcased this year reinforce our belief that the future of engineering will be shaped by Engineering Intelligence - where AI, domain expertise, and real-world problem-solving come together to drive meaningful impact. Through TECHgium®, we remain committed to nurturing future engineers who will build smarter, safer, and more sustainable industries globally.”

About L&T Technology Services Ltd
L&T Technology Services (LTTS) is a global leader in AI, Digital & ER&D Consulting Services. A listed subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro (L&T), we offer design, development, testing, and sustenance services across products and processes.

Purposeful. Agile. Innovation. is how we drive growth across the Mobility, Sustainability and Tech segments. Our customer base includes 69 Fortune 500 companies and 57 top ER&D companies across industrial products, medical devices, transportation, telecom & hi-tech, and process industries. Headquartered in India, we have over 23,800 employees across 22 global design centers, 31 global sales offices, and 98 innovation labs, as of March 31­, 2026.

For additional information about L&T Technology Services log on to www.LTTS.com.

SFL Delivers Strong Q4 Performance; Company Registers FY26 PAT Of ₹ 161 Crs (78% YoY Increase)

. Board Recommends 20% Dividend

· Consolidated revenues registered a YoY growth of 24% for Q4 and 11% for FY26

· Consolidated PAT recorded at ₹ 92 cr for Q4 FY26 and ₹ 161 cr for FY26

· Consolidated core EBITDA margin for Q4FY26 at 11.5% (up by 400bps) and growth of 90% YoY

· Consolidated core EBITDA margin for FY26 at 10.8% (up by 261bps) and growth of 46% YoY*

· Consolidated Cash EPS for Q4FY26 at ₹ 14.2 and for FY26 at ₹ 35.2

· Mattress segment registered a YoY volume growth of 13% for Q4 FY26 and 12% for FY26

Foam volumes grew by 34% YoY in Q4 FY26 and 18% for FY26

Sheela Foam limited announced its Q4 & FY26 financial results on 15th May 2026. The key highlights are as follows:

 

Particulars	Consolidated (₹ cr)
	FY25	FY26	Variance	Q4 FY25	Q4 FY26	Variance
Revenue	3,439	3,821	11%	850	1,050	24%
Core EBITDA	283	414	46%	64	121	90%
Core EBITDA %	8.2%	10.8%	261bps	7.5%	11.5%	400bps
PAT	90	161	78%	13	92	7x

Operational & Financial Highlights: Q4 FY26

· Mattress registered volume growth of 13% and foam segment grew by 34%.

· Revenue grew by 24% YoY to ₹ 1,050 cr from ₹ 850 cr on account of higher volume growth in both mattress and foam segments.

· Core EBITDA* grew by 90% to ₹ 121 cr from ₹ 64 crs, with margins expanding by 400 bps to 11.5% from 7.5% YoY, supported by higher volumes, improved gross margins and operating leverage.

· PAT of ₹ 92 cr with cash EPS of 14.2
Operational & Financial Highlights: FY26

· Mattress registered an all-round volume growth of 12% and foam segment grew by 18%.

· Revenue grew by 11% YoY from ₹ 3,439 cr to ₹ 3,821 cr on account of higher volume and value growth in both mattress and foam segments.

· Core EBITDA* grew by 46% to ₹ 414 cr from ₹ 283 crs, with margins expanding by 261 bps to 10.8% from 8.2% YoY, supported by incremental sales, integration benefits, improved gross margins and operating leverage.

· PAT of ₹ 161 cr in FY26 against PAT of ₹ 90 crs in FY25. Cash EPS of ₹ 35.2

Mr. Rahul Gautam (Chairman & Managing Director) Commenting on the results, he said that Fiscal year 2026 has been a year of realising the benefits of the Kurlon acquisition and its integration with Sheela Foam. Both Sleepwell and Kurlon brands delivered strong growth, while the foam segment also recorded commendable momentum. This broad-based performance has translated into healthy growth across both revenue and profitability. I am pleased to share that the company has achieved its highest-ever turnover and EBITDA in its history, reflecting the strength of our integrated platform, focused execution and continued commitment to profitable growth.

About Sheela Foam Limited

Leading the science of comfort in three continents, Sheela Foam is an Indian multinational company. Among the most R&D-focused foam manufacturers globally, Sheela Foam is a leading producer of polyurethane (PU) foam operating across Asia, Australia, and Europe. Founded in 1971, the company has always focused on delivering comfort to its consumers through its products. In India, its flagship brands - Sleepwell and Kurlon serve the comfort needs of over a billion people, reaching all states through a network of 11,000+ retail touchpoints. A strong practitioner of giving back to society, Sheela Foam has taken diverse initiatives for emotional wellness and multi-dimensional skill development under the Sleepwell Foundation.

SAP UnveilsThe Autonomous Enterprise - A Unified SAP Business AI Platform

* The company introduces a unified SAP Business AI Platform, deepening partnerships with Anthropic, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, Microsoft, NVIDIA and Palantir

At SAP Sapphire in 2026, SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) introduced the Autonomous Enterprise to help enhance the world’s most critical business workflows, so that humans and AI work together to meet the accelerating demands of global business profitably, strategically and safely.

“For the mission-critical processes of our customers, ‘almost right’ just isn’t good enough,” said Christian Klein, CEO of SAP SE. “By uniting SAP Business AI Platform with SAP Autonomous Suite, we anchor AI agents in the business processes, data and governance so they can deliver accurate, compliant and secure outcomes, unlocking new sources of revenue and meaningful cost savings.”

The Autonomous Enterprise includes a unified AI platform for building, contextualizing and governing agents, an autonomous suite that executes core business operations and a new user experience that redefines how people work with enterprise software.

Introducing SAP Business AI Platform

SAP Business AI Platform is a new foundation for building and deploying enterprise AI grounded in real business context. SAP Business AI Platform now unifies SAP Business Technology Platform, SAP Business Data Cloud and SAP Business AI into a single, governed environment.

At its core is the SAP Knowledge Graph solution, which gives AI agents a structured map of business entities, processes and relationships across a customer’s SAP landscape. Joule Studio is SAP’s AI-first solution for building enterprise agents, applications and agentic workflows. Developers can build using the no-code, pro-code and AI frameworks of their choice on SAP-managed infrastructure that is secure, scalable and optimized for enterprise AI.

Deploying SAP Autonomous Suite Across Every Business Function and Industry

Building on this foundation, SAP also introduced SAP Autonomous Suite, which enables SAP’s existing business applications with AI agents capable of running processes from start-to-finish.

The suite will deploy more than 50 domain-specific Joule Assistants across finance, supply chain, procurement, human capital management and customer experience. These assistants will automate end-to-end processes by orchestrating a subset of over 200 specialized agents to execute precise tasks. For example, the new Autonomous Close Assistant can compress the financial close process from weeks to days by automating journal entries, reconciliation and error resolution across the entire process.

SAP also launched Industry AI, expanding its deep industry portfolio through seven autonomous solutions that will enable start-to-finish industry processes and embed sector-specific process logic, data models and regulatory requirements. At SAP Sapphire, SAP showcased its work with European energy giant RWE to leverage Industry AI, helping reduce unplanned downtime across its offshore wind turbines. With SAP’s Autonomous Asset Management scenario, AI agents are designed to analyze data from thousands of past incidents, identify the likely root cause and generate pre-filled work orders with the right tools and proven fixes from other sites.

Designing the Autonomous User Experience

The company also revealed Joule Work, redefining how users engage with SAP software. Instead of navigating individual applications and entering data across several screens, users will now interact primarily with Joule. By describing a desired business outcome, Joule will orchestrate the right combination of workflows, data and agents to get it done.

Joule Work goes beyond conversation, proactively surfacing relevant insights and automating routine tasks behind the scenes so work moves forward even when humans aren’t actively steering it. It will be available on desktop, mobile and voice across SAP and non-SAP systems.

Accelerating the Customer Journey Toward Autonomy with €100 Million Infusion

SAP evolved its customer and partner programs to help accelerate the organization’s journey to the Autonomous Enterprise. To catalyze adoption, the company has launched a €100 million fund for SAP partners to help customers deploy SAP-built AI assistants and agents. The fund is also available to partners that extend or build new partner agents on the new SAP Business AI Platform using Joule Studio.

SAP has enhanced its RISE with SAP and SAP GROW offerings to accelerate AI adoption. Both include access to the Joule Assistants portfolio; RISE with SAP customers will have three assistants activated within their first year, while SAP GROW customers receive full portfolio access at onboarding. SAP S/4HANA on-premises and SAP ERP Central Component (SAP ECC) customers are not excluded: those that commit to transitioning the majority of their current landscape to SAP Cloud ERP gain access to select AI scenarios, bridging the gap between their current landscape and their cloud destination

SAP also introduced new agent-led transformation tooling that can reduce ERP migration efforts by more than 35 percent, driving faster and more predictable projects by automating system analysis, code remediation, configuration and testing at scale.

Lastly, SAP announced a full slate of strategic partnerships across each category:

Platform and suite partnerships include Anthropic, with Claude among the foundation models SAP’s AI platform will leverage to power Joule agents across HR, procurement and supply chain; Amazon Web Services, bringing zero-copy data integration between SAP Business Data Cloud and Amazon Athena; Google Cloud and Microsoft, enabling bidirectional agent-to-agent interoperability between Joule and external agent frameworks; Mistral AI and Cohere, delivering sovereign model options on SAP’s cloud infrastructure; n8n, providing visual AI workflow orchestration inside Joule Studio; NVIDIA, whose OpenShell provides the trusted secure runtime for Joule Studio; and Parloa, bringing AI agents into SAP Service Cloud to handle customer interactions with full access to business data and service processes.

Implementation partnerships include Palantir and Accenture, partnering on complex data migration scenarios, and Conduct for AI-powered cloud ERP migrations.

Learn more in the SAP Sapphire 2026 Innovation News Guide.

Visit the SAP News Center. Get SAP news via LinkedIn and Bluesky.

About SAP

As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP (NYSE: SAP) stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organizations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

Marriott Bonvoy Expands Partnership With The International Cricket Council Ahead Of Women’s T20 World Cup

* As Official Accommodation Partner Marriott Bonvoy Brings Fans Closer to the Action

* Marriott Bonvoy has expanded its role as Official Accommodation Partner of the International Cricket Council to include the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026

* Over 150 Marriott Bonvoy Moments are available for the matches taking place in England in June and July 2026

* Marriott Hotels to offer perfect base for members travelling to matches, with locations in all major host cities

Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International’s award-winning global travel platform, has announced an expansion of its global partnership with the International Cricket Council (ICC) to include the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, offering exclusive access to the tournament taking place in England in June and July.

Building on the success of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 earlier this year, Marriott Bonvoy is extending its role as ICC’s Official Accommodation Partner to include the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, with matches in London, Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Bristol and Southampton this Summer. The partnership underscores a shared focus on bringing fans closer to cricket through once-in-a-lifetime experiences, as women’s cricket enters a new phase of growth and momentum.

“The response to Marriott Bonvoy’s partnership with the ICC has been fantastic. We saw first-hand how bringing members closer to the game can deepen engagement and create lasting memories. The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 offers an exciting new opportunity to build on that momentum, offering unforgettable travel and on-the-ground hospitality experiences in England this summer. I am especially excited to see the return of our Anthem Kids experience, one of our most meaningful ways to bring families and the next generation of cricket players and fans even closer to the sport” said John Toomey, Chief Commercial Officer, Asia Pacific excluding China, Marriott International.

Sanjog Gupta, ICC Chief Executive, said: “We are pleased to expand our partnership with Marriott Bonvoy to encompass an association with ICC's women's events. Our collaboration with the global partner on the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 has already demonstrated how powerful experience-led engagement can be to help build deeper connections with fans. Expanding this into the pinnacle women’s tournament allows us to build on that success, making the event a more immersive experience for fans and audiences. As the global stature and affiliation for ICC's women's events grow, this partnership will help enhance fan access and deliver more engaging experiences, ensuring we continue to serve the game and its fans in deeper, more meaningful ways. Women’s cricket has entered a defining phase of growth, and partnerships like this are key to driving its future.”

Women's cricket continues to reach new heights, with the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 generating over five billion video views globally – a massive jump from 1.5 billion in 2024 – and driving 279 million social media interactions, more than triple the previous tournament. Broadcast viewership also reached new levels, with a record 185 million tuning in for the final. 2026 will be the first time the World Cup features 12 nations, all competing for the biggest prize pot in the tournament’s history.

Members can choose to use their Marriott Bonvoy points to bid or redeem for more than 150 Marriott Bonvoy Moments, including Matchday Marriott Bonvoy Tickets and Hospitality Experiences, pre-match Beyond the Boundary experiences and ICC Legend Training Experiences. Marriott Bonvoy’s Anthem Kids will return for the tournament, offering the children of members a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to walk out to the field alongside the biggest names in cricket. Starting today, Marriott Bonvoy Moments will be available online here to members worldwide.

For members travelling to the matches this summer, Marriott Hotels has locations nearby to key stadiums including London Marriott Hotel County Hall for The Oval and London Marriott Hotel Regents Park and London Marriott Hotel Maida Vale for Lord’s Cricket Ground in London, Leeds Marriott Hotel for Headingley Cricket Ground in Leeds, Manchester Marriott Victoria & Albert Hotel and Manchester Marriott Hotel Piccadilly for Old Trafford Cricket Ground in Manchester, Bristol Marriott Royal Hotel for Gloucestershire Cricket in Bristol and Portsmouth Marriott Hotel for Utilita Bowl in Southampton.

Beyond the tournament, Marriott Bonvoy’s portfolio of hotels will support accommodation requirements for ICC events and conferences throughout the year, including prizes for winners at the ICC Development Awards in Edinburgh.

About Marriott Bonvoy

Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International's award-winning travel platform, connects travelers to the people, places, and passions they love through an extraordinary collection of hotels and experiences worldwide. The platform features over 30 hotel brands and 10,000 destinations, including the largest collection of luxury offerings, distinctive boutique properties, premium home rentals, and more, providing renowned hospitality across the globe. With unrivaled access to the best in entertainment, culinary, sports, outdoor adventure, arts, culture, and more, Marriott Bonvoy offers transformative travel experiences that leave a lasting impression.

Marriott Bonvoy membership is free and unlocks unique benefits including the ability to earn points through travel and everyday activities, like purchases with co-branded credit cards. Members can redeem their points for free stays, experiences, and more. Visit marriottbonvoy.com for more information and download the Marriott Bonvoy app here. Travelers can connect with Marriott Bonvoy on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook.

About the International Cricket Council

The ICC is cricket’s global governing body, representing 110 members worldwide. It oversees major tournaments such as the Men’s and Women’s Cricket and T20 World Cups, enforces the Code of Conduct on professional standards and playing conditions (with the MCC responsible for the Laws of Cricket), appoints match officials for all international formats, and combats corruption through its Anti-Corruption Unit. Its development department also works with Associate Members to strengthen cricket systems, raise standards, and grow the game globally. 

India SME Forum Calls For GST Parity, Uniform Enforcement And Fair Competition Across India’s e-Commerce Ecosystem

India SME Forum (ISF), India’s largest not-for-profit organisation for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), today called for greater GST parity, predictable compliance systems, faster liquidity support, and uniform enforcement standards across India’s rapidly expanding e-commerce ecosystem. Referring to the recent ruling by the West Bengal Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling (WBAAAR), ISF said the decision marks an important development for GST enforcement, platform accountability, and the broader principle of competitive neutrality within digital commerce.

The Forum noted that the Government’s approval of ECLGS 5.0 remains a timely and important intervention amid continuing geopolitical uncertainty, global supply chain disruptions, rising logistics costs, inflationary pressures, and weakening global demand affecting MSMEs and exporters across sectors. India SME Forum stated that while credit support remains critical for sustaining MSME operations, protecting jobs, and maintaining investments, structural liquidity challenges and inconsistencies within the GST framework continue to place significant pressure on small businesses.

According to ISF, GST policy must uphold the principle of competitive neutrality, where no participant in the value chain derives an unfair advantage through interpretational arbitrage or regulatory asymmetry.

The Forum noted that the recent WBAAAR ruling reinforces a critical principle, that substance must prevail over form. If an activity operationally functions as a courier or integrated logistics service, its tax treatment should reflect its economic reality rather than contractual structuring or documentation practices.

India SME Forum observed that MSMEs and small online sellers already pay GST transparently across every operational layer, including platform commissions, warehousing, packaging, advertising, payment gateway charges, logistics, and returns management.

In contrast, smaller enterprises typically do not possess access to sophisticated tax structuring mechanisms, large legal teams, advance ruling strategies across multiple jurisdictions, or the ability to absorb prolonged litigation cycles. As a result, MSMEs often become among the most compliant participants within the ecosystem while simultaneously carrying a disproportionate compliance burden.

The Structural Challenge Facing Small Sellers

ISF highlighted key structural concerns impacting MSME competitiveness:

MSMEs continue to bear GST costs across all supply chain activities including logistics, packaging, warehousing, returns and platform-linked expenses.

Any interpretation or structuring that creates materially lower indirect tax burdens for dominant digital intermediaries, while similar ecosystem costs remain fully taxable for MSMEs, raises legitimate concerns around market fairness.

Inverted Duty Structures (IDS) continue to create liquidity stress where MSMEs pay higher GST on inputs and services than on finished products, leading to blocked Input Tax Credits and working capital constraints.

Delayed refunds and locked credits further intensify financial pressure for smaller enterprises operating on thin margins.

ISF stated that the WBAAAR ruling sends an important signal that tax classifications must reflect actual operational conduct, exemptions cannot be engineered through definitional interpretation alone, and regulatory systems should not inadvertently favour scale over fairness. The Forum further stated that India’s digital commerce ecosystem can achieve sustainable growth only when taxation remains neutral, compliance predictable, and market conditions equitable for enterprises of every size.

India SME Forum also highlighted the need for greater regulatory consistency and noted that where substantial questions arise regarding classification practices with broader market implications, there may be merit in broader review mechanisms by GST authorities and the issuance of clearer interpretational guidance. The Forum maintained that policy action should remain transparent, non-discriminatory, legally grounded, and focused on creating future compliance certainty for the entire ecosystem. From an MSME perspective, the larger concern is not targeted enforcement against individual companies but ensuring that no structural tax interpretation evolves into a competitive advantage available only to the largest participants in digital commerce.

Key Recommendations by ISF:

Immediate clarification and uniform enforcement of GST provisions across e-commerce logistics models

Harmonised GST interpretation across states to ensure consistency

Greater transparency around logistics charges and embedded service taxation structures

Expansion of refund eligibility under Section 54(3) to include input services and capital goods

Faster and fully automated GST refund processing for MSMEs

Rationalisation of inverted duty structures affecting small sellers and exporters

Simplification of GST compliance requirements for MSMEs operating across states and digital marketplaces

Speaking on the occasion, Vinod Kumar, President, India SME Forum, stated: "India’s MSMEs have demonstrated extraordinary resilience through multiple global disruptions over recent years. While the Government has taken important steps to support the sector through credit access, formalisation and digital infrastructure initiatives, the next phase of reforms should focus on creating a level playing field. MSMEs operate under rising logistics costs, platform dependency, return burdens and working capital constraints. Taxation frameworks must remain neutral, compliance should be predictable, and no structural interpretation should create unintended competitive advantages. Sustainable growth of India’s digital economy will depend on fairness, transparency and equal opportunity for enterprises of all sizes."

India SME Forum expressed confidence that continued dialogue between industry, Government, regulators and digital platforms will help create a stronger, more equitable and globally competitive MSME ecosystem for India.

About India SME Forum

India SME Forum is India’s leading not-for-profit organisation for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), with a large national membership base across manufacturing, services, exports, and digital commerce sectors. The Forum works extensively on policy advocacy, market access, digital empowerment, finance facilitation, skilling, export promotion, women entrepreneurship, and institutional capacity building for MSMEs across India.  

Gen Z Moving Faster On First Homes As Confidence Builds In Bengaluru: Kotak

* Tech‑driven incomes, improving connectivity and wider location choices are helping younger buyers act earlier

Stronger job visibility, improving infrastructure and simpler loan processes are helping first‑time homebuyers in Bengaluru take decisions sooner, according to Kotak Mahindra Bank. The bank is seeing more Gen Z and younger millennials move from renting to owning earlier than before.

“Across the country, we’re seeing homebuyers get younger,” said Nakul Saxena, Head – Home Loans, Kotak Mahindra Bank. “In Bengaluru as well, more first‑time buyers are choosing to move earlier instead of waiting for the perfect time. They are clearer about their budget, preferred locations and what matters in a home.”

What’s driving confidence in Bengaluru

Bengaluru’s strong job market continues to support this shift. Growth in global capability centres, startups is helping professionals build stable incomes earlier in their careers. This is making it easier for many younger buyers to plan for home ownership.

At the same time, ongoing infrastructure work—especially metro expansion and road connectivity projects—is changing how buyers look at the city. Places that earlier felt like long commutes are now within acceptable travel time.

“We are seeing more interest in North and East Bengaluru, where buyers feel they can get better space and still stay connected to work,” Saxena said. “As connectivity improves, people are more open to exploring new locations rather than focusing only on established areas.”

Changing rent vs EMI mindset

Rents in parts of Bengaluru have risen sharply over the last few years, especially in key job corridors. For many households, the decision is about affordability as well as long‑term certainty.

Owning a home can offer more predictability compared to rising rents in high‑demand areas. As a result, some first‑time buyers are choosing to act sooner rather than waiting indefinitely.

What buyers really look for

Kotak’s interactions with home loan customers show that while modern amenities and community living continue to attract buyers—especially those upgrading from rentals—the final decision is still based on a few basics:

Thorough due diligence of all legal aspects related to the land and the property

Getting possession on time

Good construction quality

Homes with natural light and ventilation

“These are the factors that give buyers comfort,” Saxena said. “Amenities are important, but they also want clarity and confidence in their decision. The final decision depends on how the home will work for the family over time.”