Author: Abizar Attari
News Editor

Bengaluru: Izmo Ltd’s subsidiary, Izmo Microsystems, has achieved a breakthrough in semiconductor design by compacting the Printed Circuit Board (PCB) of a camera component by 84%, using highly advanced dense wire bonding. Designed for use in commercial space applications, this technology is currently held only by a select group of global Tier 1 aerospace firms. The Bengaluru-based company achieved this through integrating active components in bare-die form onto a stacked substrate configuration. Using a fully indigenised Hermatic Ceramic Package, this solution is aimed at meeting the highly demanding thermal and vacuum conditions for long-term space missions. This highly complex 3D…

London: Despite checks and balances in place, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has moved about $1 billion in cryptocurrencies over the past two years, according to a report by blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs. According to the report, the IRGC, Iran’s leading security and military organisation, skirted the wide-ranging sanctions against it to transfer funds via Tether (USDT) to entities affiliated with it. The money was transferred through two UK-linked companies Zedcex and Zedxion, which were, in turn, related to each other. In fact, almost 56% of the total value of crypto volumes came from the IRGC, the report…

Solana (SOL) is attracting a renewed interest from traders and institutional investors, following a boost in circulating supply and a renewed interest from traders and institutional investors have boosted its prospects. For Solana, the main lynchpin here has been reports of Morgan Stanley applying for a Solana-focused altcoin exchange traded fund (ETF), a move that could boost adoption greatly. Western Union is also integrating the altcoin to its spot ETF, further encouraging investors.  The crowd stayed focused on the 2025 volatility, I watched @solana enter 2026 by delivering on its biggest technical promise. The Firedancer validator client is officially live…

Pune: Defence Manufacturing company Nibe Limited’s subsidiary Nibe Defence and Aerospace Limited (NDAL) has received a license from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to manufacture firearm components, firearms and rifles for the military in particular. This extends Nibe’s capabilities, as it already manufactures assault rifles and small machine guns in partnership with foreign OEMs. In a regulatory filing on January 10, Nibe announced its receipt of the license, under the Arms Act, 1959 and the Arms Rules, 2016. This is expected to help the company to formally enter into the segment to manufacture firearms, ammunition and related ssytems.  The…

New Delhi: Almost 73% of India’s total fertilizer demand was met with domestic production in 2025, the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers said. Domestic production of fertilizers have reached a record high in 2025, reaching 524.62 lakh tonnes, even as urea imports more than doubled to 7.17 million tonnes in FY25 due to a decline in domestic production. India has sufficiently ramped up fertilizer production, from 433.29 lakh tonnes in 2021 to 507.93 lakh tonnes in 2023 for commonly used fertilizers like DAP, Urea, NPKs and SSP. “This sustained growth reflects the robustness of India’s fertiliser manufacturing ecosystem and the…

Mumbai: Japanese surface solutions company Aica Kogyo has issued an open offer to acquire an additional 26% of laminates major Stylam Industries, weeks after its promoters sold 40% of their stakes for ₹1,525 crore. The company has launched an open offer to buy 44 lakh shares of the company at a price of ₹2,250 per share. Aica Kogyo is a leading manufacturer of chemical and building material products, including high pressure laminates, construction materials, adhesives and coatings. It has manufacturing bases across Asia and North America.  The company is already present in India through its local subsidiary AICA Laminates India,…

New Delhi: NIIT Learning Systems Ltd (NIIT MTS), a leading corporate training company, has acquired US-based SweetRush Inc, as the company looks to expand its reach to US-based clients. SweetRush Inc offers customized learning experiences enhanced with AI, and operates with a team of over 100 employees across the US and Costa Rica. With this acquisition, NIIT MTS aims to enhance its Managed Learning Services Platform with SweetRush’s AI-enabled, award-winning design learning solutions, aiming to upskill employees for Fortune 1000 clients. The transaction, worth $26 million, was done through its wholly owned subsidiary NIIT (USA) and includes annual performance-based earnouts…

New Delhi: Mid-market focused hospitality brand Lemon Tree Hotels is reorganising its business into two distinct verticals, with an aim to focus on their core competencies, while helping to unlock value for investors. Lemon Tree Hotels Limited (LTHL) and its subsidiary Fleur Hotels are dividing its portfolio of rooms as LTHL aims to become a hotel management and development platform, while Fleur Hotels will spearhead the group’s expansion while holding the main hotel assets. As part of a comprehensive reorganisation plan, LTHL and Fleur will allocate their portfolio of 154 owned and managed hotels and those in development into two…

New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has given the go-ahead for imposing a fresh 500% tariff on India, as the Sanctioning Russia Act, 2025 is expected to be taken up in the US Congress early next week.  Under the proposed bill, any country engaging in buying Russian-origin uranium or petrolum products could face a 500% tariff in relation to the value of the goods and services exchanged. Despite the unreasonable 50% tariffs imposed in 2025, India continues to defy the US by purchasing cheaper Russian oil. “We are fully aware of the proposed bill being discussed, and we are carefully…

New Delhi: India’s data centre capacity has more than doubled in 2025, rising from 191MW to 387MW in a year, a 103% year-on-year increase. Surging demand from artificial intelligence (AI), cloud services, enterprise digitisation and content streaming platforms has sparked renewed interest in the sector, a report by Savills India said.  “With data centre absorption estimated at ~430 MW in 2025, driven by both enterprise and hyperscale demand, India’s digital infrastructure growth is gaining strong momentum. Rising cloud adoption by enterprises is accelerating demand from global hyperscalers and domestic cloud players, while emerging locations such as Visakhapatnam, backed by policy…