India is the third largest startup ecosystem in the world and angel investors have been a key part of its meteoric rise, investing seed stage capital which many were initially apprehensive of. With over 125 established angel networks, these investors have backed 540+ funding rounds and supported 470+ startups.

Despite global headwinds, office space net absorption in India grew 5% to 10.37 million square feet in July - September across seven cities due to strong demand from tech and R&D, per JLL India. Absorption was highest in 18 months, driven mainly by GCC occupiers with 44% share. Cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, and Delhi-NCR saw growth, while other metros saw weaker leasing momentum.

Paytm Money, the trading platform owned by One97 Communications Ltd., reported a net profit of INR 42.8 Cr in FY23, a huge jump compared to its loss in FY22. This was helped by brokerage income which rose 140% YoY, forming 92% of the total operating revenue. Total expenses jumped by 13.2%, with employee benefit and subcontract expenses being the highest.

The Indian stock market rebounded on Friday, finishing the trading session with gains of over 300 points. Metal, healthcare, public sector, and oil & gas stocks saw buying activity while IT stocks were under selling pressure. Eris Lifesciences rose 3%, Aurobindo Pharma gained 4%, and NTPC closed with a gain of 3%.

Anup Bagchi, CEO of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, believes insurance policies can reach more people and lead to continuous growth for the sector if they are positioned like home loans. With Bima Sugam, an online platform where consumers can shop various insurance policies from multiple companies, Bagchi believes wider awareness among the lower and high-income sections will be created.

Zoho, a Saas major, has seen a decline in business due to the global economy taking a turn for the worse. This is evidenced by geographically and product-wise diversified revenue streams, 82% drop in investments and lack of SaaS unicorns in 2023 compared to 9 in 2022. These macroeconomic pressures have caused Freshworks to layoff staff and other SaaS firms to cut back on hiring.

: Crypto investor Chris Burniske suggests Solana (SOL) is positioned to outperform Ethereum (ETH), Bullish on SOL for the "entire bottom range" of its price action, developers prefer staying in Ethereum ecosystem, Investors should consider adding exposure to SOL.

NASA has delayed its Psyche mission until October 12th. The mission's aim is to explore a metal-rich asteroid, called Psyche, orbiting the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. With this mission, NASA will gain new insight into our solar system's history and formation.

Jim Chanos has criticized Michael Lewis for suggesting that FTX would have survived had people not pulled out their deposits, calling it "nonsense" and comparing it to Enron's defense. Chanos argues that both were massively insolvent, not illiquid. This comes as Sam Bankman-Fried stands trial for fraud charges and Lewis claims he considered giving Donald Trump $5 billion to not run for office.

European stocks began the last quarter of 2023 with modest gains, lifted by the US avoiding a government shutdown and investors looking ahead to factory activity data for clues on eurozone business health. Vivendi rose 3.3% after an upgrade, while BAE Systems climbed 2.1% after winning an AUKUS contract. Analysts expected manufacturing PMI to remain unchanged, at 43.4 in September.

The Indian consumer durables' sector is set for a resurgence due to rebound in the housing sector, coupled with high single-digit price increase. Crompton, Havells, Orient, and V-Guard are anticipated to recover in the Electronic Consumer Durables segment. Switchgear, currently below 5%, is rapidly growing, and companies are investing in people, capacity, capabilities, R&D, marketing.

India must establish AI CoEs beyond legacy educational institutions to ensure that locally developed AI products & solutions are tailored to the Indian context. This could increase pool of quality researchers, promote job creation & aid Digital India, Make in India & Atmanirbhar Bharat initiatives. With support from government grants and soft loans, India could improve its Global Innovation.

BPCL has offered a spot gasoil cargo via sales tender for the first time in over a year. The tender is for 40,000 metric tons of 10ppm sulphur gasoil with Oct. 26-27 loading from Kochi. Prices are up from prior Sept. loaders, possibly due to strong profits overseas. BPCL was also looking to buy cargoes for June-July delivery to its Mumbai refinery. No comment yet from BPCL.

The Dutch competition watchdog ACM said they have rejected Apple's objections against pending fines of 50 million euros for not complying with regulations limiting their dominant position in the App Store. The company has so far fulfilled most of the conditions of the ruling but there is still an undisclosed third element that they must meet to comply fully with the ruling.

The period of Pitru Paksha, between Sept 29 - Oct 14, is an inappropriate time for booking homes as many observe rituals for their ancestors. Conversations with developers in Mumbai & Pune reveal this trend isn't widely practiced among younger people but is still present due to consulting elders. Property registrations in Mumbai dropped by 10,500 in Sept 2023 compared to 10,900 the previous month.